Qatar’s 2022 World Cup CEO Nasser Al-Khater announced that Argentina’s matches with Mexico and Saudi Arabia are the best-selling at the moment, less than three months before the start of the first global football wedding in the Middle East.
In an interview with Qatar News Agency (QNA) on Twitter on Wednesday, Al-Khater said: “The demand for tickets is huge, according to FIFA (International Football Association), they were surprised.”
He noted that “the match between Saudi Arabia and Argentina in Lusail is the second most watched match and the tickets for the second stage were sold out, and of course Argentina and Mexico are in the first place.”
He added: “There are plans to transport some of the Saudi population by bus from the border crossings to the stadiums.”
The number of tickets sold for World Cup matches in Qatar reached 2.45 million, including half a million last month before the final sale, according to what FIFA announced last week.
There are 3 million tickets available for the 2022 World Cup and 2.45 million tickets correspond to tickets sold in all categories (fans, FIFA partners, associations, hospitality).
In this context, Al-Khater indicated that “there will be a third and final stage of ticket sales”, noting that the tournament’s revenue “could be around $6 billion according to FIFA estimates”.
FIFA will announce the launch date for the last-minute sales phase at the end of September, also on a first-come, first-served basis, with sales starting at ticket offices in Doha after the launch of the last-minute sales phase.
More than one million visitors are expected to visit the State of Qatar, which will host the first-ever World Cup in the Middle East, between November 20 and December 18 during the World Cup.