Final phase of World Cup ticket sales to open April 1

The "last-minute" sales phase will then remain open through the end of the tournament, which runs from June 11 to July 19, global football's governing body said in a statement.

Tickets will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis and be "released for sale on a rolling basis, including, on occasion, for matches taking place on the same day."

The last-minute phase is the fourth and final official ticket sales phase. During prior phases, FIFA said, more than 1 million tickets were sold out of more than 500 million requests.

In total, some 7 million tickets are expected to be sold, taking into account the capacities of the 16 stadiums being used for the tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

But FIFA has been heavily criticized over the price of tickets, with the Football Supporters of Europe (FSE) group filing a lawsuit on Tuesday with the European Commission over "excessive ticket prices."

The group claims FIFA has "abused its monopoly position to impose excessive ticket prices and opaque and unfair purchasing conditions and processes on European fans ahead of the 2026 World Cup."

FIFA has defended ticket prices, with president Gianni Infantino saying they are driven by "insane" demand.

Under pressure, FIFA created a category of 60-dollar tickets reserved for official supporters' clubs.

According to FSE, this category was practically exhausted before sales opened to the general public.

FIFA also announced on Wednesday they will reopen the official platform for ticket resale and exchange on April 2.

The platform has also been at the center of criticism due to the prohibitive prices of tickets listed for resale, although FIFA says it does not interfere in this "fan-to-fan market" where the reseller sets the displayed price of each ticket.