FIFA 2022 World Cup First Phase Ticket Requests Pending

FIFA opened their ticketing portal for the 2022 World Cup Qatar on January 19th 2022. For three weeks, fans could sign up and apply for tickets to individual matches, team-specific and stadium-specific matches, from the Group Stage to the Final. The portal closed on February 8th, with 17 million applications submitted, including a staggering 1.8 million requests for the tournament final. Now, fans worldwide are waiting to hear whether their pending ticket status will turn to ‘tickets allocated’!

What Happens Now?

The January 19th to February 8th sales period was just the initial application phase for 2022 World Cup tickets, and the response was overwhelming. Huge numbers of fans from Qatar and its neighbouring countries, such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, applied for tickets, looking to watch their teams battle for supremacy this November and to be at the first Middle Eastern World Cup in the tournament’s history. The ticketing portal was also swamped with ticket requests from fans across the globe, from Brazil to India, England to the USA, France to Mexico. With so many applications and so much interest in the event, especially the Final, which attracted almost 2 million ticket requests, the allocation period will be tense for many waiting fans. So, what happens next?

During the allocation period, FIFA will verify that each submission adheres to specific criteria (i.e. ticket restrictions per household) before allocation of seats begins. Where demand exceeds supply for particular matches (for example, the knock-out stages and the Final) or specific ticket categories, ticket applications will be entered into a random selection draw. As pointed out on the FIFA ticketing site, ticket requests do not, sadly, guarantee that tickets will be allocated to the applicants. However, if, during the application process, you checked the box allowing your requested ticket(s) to be upgraded or downgraded within the available match categories, your chances of having tickets allocated is increased.

So, how long do we have to wait to see if our ticket requests were accepted or not? The official word is not before March 8th. In which case, you should hope to receive an email from FIFA on or shortly after that date informing you whether or not your application was successful, not successful, or partly successful (for those who applied for more than one match). You can also check your ticket status from Match 8th via your online FIFA account (at FIFA.com/tickets ), set up prior to completing the ticket application.

If you are one of the lucky ones to secure your ticket(s), you will also receive details from FIFA, via email, on how to pay. Payments will need to be made before a specific date, set by FIFA and communicated by email; otherwise, the ticket allocation will be made null and void.

Once payments have been made, FIFA will also advise of the method and time of ticket delivery.

If you missed out on the initial phase of sales or were unsuccessful this round, there will be further opportunities to get your hands on tickets. Once the first phase tickets have been allocated, another first-come, first-served sales phase will be scheduled.

Worth Noting

It's worth noting that all FIFA 2022 World Cup ticket holders will need a Hay'ya ID card to enter the tournament stadiums come November/December 2022. The SMART ID card will also offer various other benefits to spectators at the event, including free transport during matchdays.

Fans may only apply for the Hay'ya card once their tickets have been confirmed and purchased. 

To learn more about the Hay'ya card, check out our Hay'ya Card: What Is It, Who Needs It, and How Do I Get One? article.