Even FIFA’s ticketing sub-committee chairman, Horst Schmidt, has been blown away by ticket sales for the World Cup.
“The latest ticket application figures are impressive, compared with the previous editions of the FIFA World Cup,” Schmidt revealed last week, after noting that ticket sales had hit the 500 000 mark in just 10 days.
It would seem that South Africans are snapping up their tickets and lining up to be a part of history ÔÇô 77 percent of applications, or 386 300 tickets, were requested by South African residents. The remaining 114 237 tickets came from around the globe. As this is the first time a World Cup will be played on African soil, the allure is even stronger.
So far, the United States has requested more tickets than any other overseas nation, having applied for 22 942 tickets. The United Kingdom follows hot on their heels, with 20 232. The other countries lining up to head for South Africa are Mexico (7 981 tickets requested), Germany (7 697), Australia (6 277) and Brazil (4 760).
With sales expected to increase during the current phase, about 1 million tickets are made available to the public, until 22 January. So if you haven’t booked your place, make sure you do so now.
