Today, Wednesday, FIFA President Gianni Infantino urged fans to “seize the moment” and buy tickets for the still-unsold Women’s World Cup for its opening match in New Zealand tomorrow.
Australia and New Zealand will host the World Cup between July 20 and August 20, and while ticket sales in the first country were up to expectations, concerns accompanied the issue in the second country.
The finals will open with New Zealand and Norway at Eden Park in Auckland, which can accommodate 50,000 people, while Australia will play after hours against Ireland at Stadium Australia in Sydney, which will be filled with 80,000 fans.
The Secretary-General of the Senegalese International Federation, Fatima Samoura, said that one million and 375 thousand tickets for the World Cup were sold, exceeding the total number for the last edition in France in 2019, in which 24 teams participated, compared to 32 in the current one.
Even today, tickets were still available on FIFA’s official website for almost all matches, including the opening match between New Zealand and former champions Norway, and the two semi-final matches.
“My only message from here is seize the moment, be proud of what you have been able to achieve here in New Zealand and in Australia,” the FIFA president told reporters in Auckland.
“Be proud of what will be the biggest event, not just a sporting event, that has been organized here so far,” added Infantino, who holds dual Swiss and Italian citizenship.
He also said, “Today I feel tired because I just landed, but I feel very happy,” in a playful nod to his controversial speech in Doha on the eve of the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
New Zealand will host 29 of the 64 matches scheduled for the finals.
Jane Patterson, director of operations for the tournament in New Zealand, says earlier this week that 320,000 tickets have been sold in her country so far.
And the Senegalese Samoura added, “The number of tickets sold a month ago exceeded the total number of tickets sold in France. We met our expectations in terms of numbers.”
“However, we still have tickets available for some matches, so my only plea is not to wait until the last minute.”
