If you want to attend one of the opening matches of the upcoming FIFA World Cup, hotels and tickets are still widely available. But depending on which match you want to attend, it could cost you roughly the same amount as a month of rent in Chicago.
For the first time since 1994, the United States will host the World Cup. Eleven cities across the U.S. — as well as five in Mexico and Canada — will host the biggest sporting event in the world, with the soccer tournament kicking off on June 11 and running through July 19.
Since tickets went on sale last year, there has been ongoing controversy surrounding the cost of attendance, from confusing (and expensive) ticket prices to high transit costs.
NBC News analyzed how expensive it would be to attend the opening match in each U.S. city based on hotel and ticket prices.
Hotel costs were determined based on a two-night stay at the five cheapest Marriott, Hilton and Hyatt hotels within 15 miles of each city’s World Cup venue. Ticket costs were determined based on the average get-in price between the ticket reseller SeatGeek and FIFA’s own ticket marketplace.
The average price for one hotel room and one ticket ranged from slightly over $600 in Miami to more than $2,000 in New York and New Jersey.
Miami came out on top in both hotel and ticket affordability for its opening match, which will feature Saudi Arabia taking on Uruguay on June 15.
Boston had the most expensive hotel average, coming in just shy of $1,000 for a two-night stay near Gillette Stadium, home of the NFL’s New England Patriots.
The most expensive ticket by far was for the Brazil vs. Morocco match at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on June 13, with the get-in price approaching $1,400.
The first match that will take place in the U.S. will be on June 12 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, featuring the U.S. taking on Paraguay. Tickets for that match were considerably cheaper than for the New Jersey opener, though the Los Angeles area was still the second-most-expensive city to attend.
With the final still well over a month away — and the teams far from being set — tickets are already an incredibly hot commodity. The average get-in price is already over $7,000 more expensive for the final in New Jersey than for the opener.
