What to know about the latest FIFA World Cup ticket lottery

If you haven’t secured FIFA World Cup tickets for next year, your luck hasn’t run out just yet.

But you might start wanting to put some dates in your calendar, and if you haven’t already, make sure that you’ve got all your bank accounts and credit cards in order.

The next stage of FIFA World Cup tickets begins this Thursday, Dec. 11, when the entry period opens for the “random selection draw.”

This is the third of four ticket lotteries administered by FIFA, with approximately two million of the 11 million total tickets sold so far. It’s the first ticket lottery since the tournament’s schedule was revealed, following the FIFA World Cup Draw last week.

The groups are set. (FIFA)

Essentially, interested buyers can put in their info for what games and dates they’d like to attend, and be thrown into a random draw should they be selected. But buyer beware: if you do get lucky, you’ll be automatically charged for your tickets in February, which means that you can’t simply select too many options if you’re not planning on actually buying them.

Signing up early “will not impact the fan’s chances of success,” as per FIFA, so it’s not necessarily something you have to rush to do, as long as you’re signed up by Jan. 13.

Fans will be able to purchase up to four tickets per match and a maximum total of 40 tickets for the tournament, per household.

Those who enter the ticket draw may be successful for any or none of their selections, hence the randomness of the draw.

The primary place to buy World Cup tickets is FIFA.com/tickets, with FIFA also launching an official resale market via the same link. However, the marketplace is currently closed in the days following last week’s group and schedule draws, and will reopen on Dec. 15.

Prospective buyers will need a FIFA ID, which is used to verify each account interested in tickets.

For other ticketing avenues, fans can also check out the CanadaRED program for Canada matches, or the FIFA World Cup official hospitality tickets for a fancier option.

If there are tickets still available after the random draw, they’ll become available to the general public on a first-come, first-served basis, with more details to come later.

What is the FIFA World Cup Schedule in Canada?

Toronto

• June 12:  Canada vs. Italy/Wales/Northern Ireland/Bosnia and Herzegovina
• June 7: Ghana vs. Panama
• June 20: Germany vs. Cote d’Ivoire
• June 23: Croatia vs. Panama
• June 26: Senegal vs. Bolivia/Suriname/Iraq
• July 2″ Round of 32 Group K runner-up vs. Group L runner-up

Vancouver

• June 13: Australia vs. Türkiye/Slovakia/Romania/Kosovo
• June 18: Canada vs. Qatar
• June 21: New Zealand vs. Egypt
• June 24: Canada vs. Switzerland
• June 26: New Zealand vs. Belgium
• July 2: Group B Winner vs. 3rd Place of Group E/F/G/I/J
• July 7: Round of 16 match

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