The 2026 FIFA World Cup opened with a controversy that has been building for months — and the Korea vs Czech Republic match in Guadalajara put it on full display. Empty seats. Rows of unoccupied spaces in a 46,000-seat stadium hosting the world's biggest tournament.
FIFA says fans were in the concourses. Critics say the tickets cost too much. Here is the full story.
What Happened in Guadalajara
The second game of the World Cup saw empty seats visible throughout the stands for South Korea's 2-1 win over the Czech Republic. While more than 80,000 boisterous fans saw Mexico beat South Africa 2-0 in the Azteca Stadium, the game in Guadalajara hours later involved two teams ranked below the top 25. Large numbers of empty seats could be seen at the almost 46,000-seat stadium, though the official attendance was put at 44,985.
FIFA blamed the empty seats on fans who watched from the concourses rather than their assigned seats, saying "several ticketed fans could be seen standing in concourses rather than staying in their assigned seats throughout the match."
Fan groups and reporters at the stadium told a different story. Some fans at the stadium blamed the high ticket prices for the rows of empty seats and criticised FIFA for their pricing model.
The Ticket Price Problem
This controversy didn't start on June 12. It has been building since FIFA announced its pricing strategy months ago.
A list published by the German Football Association revealed prices ranged from $180 to $700 for varying group stage games. The lowest price for the final was $4,185 and the highest was $8,680. The English Football Association shared pricing information that showed buying a ticket for every game through to the final would cost just over $7,000.
The last time the US hosted the World Cup in 1994, prices ranged from $25 to $475. In Qatar in 2022, prices ranged from around $70 to $1,600.
FIFA responded to backlash by introducing a $60 "supporter entry tier" for all 104 matches — but fan groups argued those cheap tickets were mostly gone before general public sales opened.
Football Supporters Europe and consumer group Euroconsumers filed a formal complaint with the European Commission, alleging FIFA abused its monopoly position by imposing conditions on fans that would never be acceptable in a competitive market.
The attorneys general of New York and New Jersey issued a subpoena to FIFA over its ticketing practices.
FIFA's Defense
FIFA President Gianni Infantino defended the prices, saying they were in line with other major North American sporting events. He pointed out that FIFA sold more than 6 million tickets and that demand exceeded expectations. The official attendance for the Korea match was listed at 44,985 — close to the stadium's 45,664 capacity.
But critics note that an official attendance figure counts every ticket scanned at the gate — including fans who went to the concourse for food and never came back to their seats. Empty rows in photos from the match tell a different visual story than the numbers suggest.
Why Korean Fans Should Care
The empty seat controversy directly affected the Korea vs Czech Republic match. Korean fans who wanted to be in Guadalajara to watch Son Heung-min's final World Cup opener faced ticket prices starting at $180 for group stage seats — far beyond what Korean fans paid for any previous World Cup.
For international Korean fans — diaspora communities in the US, Australia, Japan — the combination of high ticket prices, travel costs, and accommodation made attending in person essentially impossible for all but the wealthy.
This is exactly why streaming on CHZZK matters more than ever for this World Cup. And why saving those streams before they disappear is more important than at any previous tournament.
The Broader Issue — Corporate Games vs Fan Culture
Henry Winter, a prominent football writer, cautioned that excluding passionate supporters risks turning the competition into what he termed the "Corporate Games," potentially leaving broadcasters facing empty seats and muted crowds.
For fans travelling from outside North America, the financial burden extends far beyond tickets. Supporters "will fly in from outside the US, spend on lodging and feeding" — making this "one helluva costly World Cup for fans."
The irony is complete. FIFA sold the 2026 World Cup on the promise of accessibility — 48 teams, the Americas, hundreds of thousands of cheap seats. The target from US soccer officials when bidding for the tournament was to offer hundreds of thousands of $21 seats. FIFA implemented dynamic pricing for the first time at a World Cup, with prices set to fluctuate based on demand.
The result: empty seats at the second match of the tournament. Fans watching from concourses because the seats felt too expensive to commit to. And a governing body blaming the fans.
Watch Online — Save What You Can
For Korean fans who cannot afford to be there in person — CHZZK is streaming all Korean national team matches free. The Korea vs Mexico match on June 19 and Korea vs South Africa on June 25 are both free to watch without a Naver Plus membership.
After each match, VODs and highlight clips appear on CHZZK and disappear within days. Vodloader downloads CHZZK clips and VODs directly. Paste the URL after the match and save it before it is gone.
The stadiums may have empty seats. The streams don't have to.