Canada and Bosnia and Herzegovina are set to kick off the World Cup ‘s Group B matches today as the competition remains mired in controversy, with opening matches left sparsely attended due to sky-high ticket prices.
The two teams will kick off at 3pm at Toronto Stadium in Toronto, Canada – around 8pm BST – for the second home match of the cup so far after Mexico opened the games on Thursday. While millions of people around the world are expected to tune in, and did so to watch the opening ceremony yesterday, there were some empty seats noticable during one of the two opening games.
Large patches of empty seats could be seen at Estadio Akron in Guadalajara, where South Korea played Czechia in what will have been a humiliating sight for FIFA, which has been under fire for a contentious approach to its ticketing prices.
The organisation adopted variable pricing for the first time in World Cup history, which has made the event too expensive for legions of fans as game prices were driven up by an average of 34 percent in October last year. The move meant that the cheapest standard finals tickets were $5,785 (£4,315), with some tickets hitting resale pages for close to $33,000 (£24,621).
Earlier this month, prices were reduced in an under-the-radar move across all 104 scheduled matches, and 70 percent of bulk-reserved hotel rooms were released.
However, as of the eve of the tournament, around 180,000 tickets were still listed across official FIFA resale platforms. On top of that, a staggering 15,000 group-stage tickets were available directly through its site.
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Former England striker Alan Shearer is concerned over how strict the refereeing may be during the opening days of the World Cup after three red cards were shown in Mexico’s 2-0 win over South Africa.
The tournament opener saw Yaya Sithole sent off for bringing down Brian Gutierrez just outside of the box and was followed by team-mate Themba Zwane after a VAR review for appearing to strike Roberto Alvarado in the face during a tangle. Cesar Montes was then dismissed for the hosts in stoppage time.
Speaking on the Rest Is Football podcast, Shearer said: “My slight concern would be is it’s like the start of the season when you expect to be really tight on everything and I think that could be the case here, is that for the first 10 days or so, you might see decisions that we’re going to be talking about.
“There was a couple of them on the edge, I thought. The first one was definitely a red card and then the other two I think were on the edge. Particularly the one for the slap on the face, I’m not sure where else he could have put his arm.”
Alan Shearer has spoken about the red cards handed down during the first World Cup game(Image: Getty Images)
Argentine Mauricio Pochettino is coaching the US team this year, with high hopes that he can improve the country’s historically bleak fortunes at the competition.
USMNT take on Paraguay later, and Pochettino said yesterday that he believe sthey should “play like they are a child” at the showdown later. He said: “They need to think tomorrow and play like they are a child — with [no] pressure, with [no] responsibility.
“Just to play, doing what they need to do and what they know to do.”
The USA team is being coached by Argentine Mauricio Pochettino(Image: Getty Images)
While England’s first game against Croatia is still five days out, players have far from shrunken from the public eye, with Jude Bellingham offering some introspection ahead of the match next Wednesday.
Bellingham sat down with the Lion’s Den to discuss the team’s last major compeition, the Euros 2024, saying the team was among “one of two or three teams that could win”. Reflecting on the competition, he said: “At the Euros I think we got a few things wrong off the pitch, I don’t feel the group connected as well as it could have for a number of reasons.
“When it came to the tournament, we were seen as one of two or three teams that could win it. We weren’t playing well, which doesn’t help, so even when we were winning, we didn’t get the feeling that we were as happy as we should be.”
Bellingham has 48 England caps to his name(Image: Getty Images)
According to the latest attendance figures from the South Korea vs Czechia match, the game at Estadio Akron in Guadalajara, Mexico, was nearly fully attended.
FIFA said the official attendance at the stadium, which is the second smallest of those on offer during the tournament this year, sat at 44,985. The number is just 700 seats short of the total capacity of 45,664.
But the figure doesn’t explain why there appeared to be a cast amount of empty space at the venue. A FIFA spokesperson told the New York Times’ The Atheltic that they could only “refer to the official attendance”, rather than clarify whether the attendance numbers were based on tickets sold or people through the gate.
The Korea vs Czechia game was notably sparsely populated
Bosnia and Herzegovina will help kick off the World Cup from Group B today, with a major first game against Canada on the nation’s home turf this evening.
The upcoming game will be eagerly followed by residents of the Balkan nation, but one fan has upped the excitement level by travelling to Canada to watch the game in person. The fan will attend the game this evening after spending $12,000 (£8958) on two World Cup Games.
Liam DoyleToday08:51 BST
While yesterday was a celebrated start to the World Cup, with major pop stars participating in the opening ceremony and two eye-popping matches kicking off proceedings, it was images of violence that dominated late-night coverage.
Protesters clash with police in Mexico(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Police were seen clashing with protesters outside the stadium due to ongoing fury from Mexico City residents, who argued officials have focused on the event over urgent social concerns currently plaguing the country.
Protesters were seen throwing Molotov cocktails(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Over 1,000 family members of Mexico’s missing people marched toward the stadium yesterday carrying candles and photographs of their missing loved ones.
Protesters were met with massive police opposition(Image: Getty Images)
The match was reportedly continuing while the violence erupted, but concerns were raised about crowd safety at the venue.
Liam DoyleToday08:43 BST
Canada, being the second of three countries hosting the cup this year alongside Mexico and the US, will get its own opening ceremony this evening when the tournament comes to Toronto.
Burna Boy and Shakira, two national icons, opened the games for Mexico in Mexico City on Thursday to a huge reception. In Canada, which will have its ceremony at 6.30pm BST in BMO Field ahead of the clash with Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Michael Buble, an icon of similar standing, will be leading the ceremony, and Alessia Cara and Alanis Morisette are set to support him.
Liam DoyleToday08:30 BST
Another opening ceremony will take place tonight in Canada as the co-host’s get to start their leg of the World Cup.
Organisers will likely be hoping events of yesterday won’t repeat themselves, with Mexico’s opener against South Africa having descended into chaos. Footage shared on social media shows unrest outside Gate 8 of Estadio Azteca, where protesters were reportedly seen hurling Molotov cocktails.
Liam DoyleToday08:19 BST
Canada, co-hosts of the World Cup this year, will kick off Group B at Toronto Stadium this evening in front of what is expected to be a massive home crowd.
They are facing off against Bosnia and Herzegovina, and face massive pressure as, while Jesse Marsch’s team boasts an eight-match unbeaten run, Canada has lost all six of its previous World Cup matches. Both teams will be seeking a victory, however, as they will go on to face Switzerland and Qatar in what are expected to be two tough matches.