Thousands of England fans miss World Cup kick-off vs Iran as FIFA confirm ticketing app issues

Ticket chaos before kick-offFIFA release statementThousands of empty seats

WHAT HAPPENED? Thousands of England and Iran supporters were reportedly unable to make it to their seats in time for kick-off at the Khalifa International Stadium. A large number of empty seats were visible as the Group B clash got underway, with FIFA releasing an official statement to confirm that the large queues outside the ground were being caused by a technical issue regarding tickets.

For a sold-out game that’s due to kick off in 25 minutes, the Khalifa International Stadium is very far from full. Ticket chaos outside. #FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/NXrlCeIRbO

— Henry Winter (@henrywinter) November 21, 2022

WHAT THEY SAID: ”Some spectators are currently experiencing an issue with accessing their tickets via the FIFA ticketing app,” the statement read. ”FIFA is working on solving the issue. In the meantime, fans who are not able to access their mobile tickets should check the email accounts they used to register with the ticketing app for further instructions. In case fans cannot access their email accounts, the stadium’s Ticket Resolution Point will be able to support. We thank fans for their understanding as we work to fix the issue as soon as possible.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE: The contest was originally a sell-out, but England and Iran had to make do without their full respective fanbases in the first half. The chaos comes after the World Cup opener on Sunday, which saw some 20,000 Qatar fans leave their seats at half-time during the hosts’ 2-0 loss to Ecuador.

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WHAT NEXT FOR ENGLAND? Gareth Southgate’s side will face the USMNT in the second group game on Friday, before taking on Wales in a home nations’ clash next Tuesday.