New Delhi: FIFA has cancelled the 2026 World Cup tickets which were issued to around 60 fans after a website glitch allowed them to secure seats without paying, the football governing body confirmed on Thursday.

The affected fans were notified about tickets on Wednesday that were “allocated at no charge (0 USD) due to a prior payment issue during the checkout process”, FIFA said in a statement on X.

“The tickets requested by these fans remain reserved, and the affected fans have been invited to complete payment of the correct amount. FIFA regrets the error and any inconvenience caused,” the statement added.

The tickets for the global tournament were sold through FIFA’s official World Cup website on May 21. The incident happened more than three months after the statement of FIFA President Gianni Infantino, in which he declared that tickets for all 104 matches of the expanded tournament were sold out.

The latest blunder has added more concerns around FIFA’s ticketing programme, which is already under investigation by the attorneys general of New York and New Jersey for possible violations of consumer protection laws.

Despite the earlier claims by the FIFA President, tickets for the 48-team tournament continue to remain available through the global body’s official sales channels ahead of the tournament, which starts next Thursday in Mexico City. It remains to be seen whether prices for less popular games will fall under FIFA’s dynamic pricing model, which has been criticised by the fans.

The global body is also operating its own resale platform and charging a 15 percent commission from both buyers and sellers. Ticket prices for the 2026 World Cup have received massive criticism from fans around the world as they are significantly higher than those for previous editions.

FIFA has defended the pricing structure of the tournament, saying that the generated revenue will help fund football development programmes across its member associations. The governing football is directly controlling ticket pricing and sales as part of its decision to bring the tournament’s operations in-house.