Football Supporters Europe executive director Ronan Evain has warned that FIFA "has lost control of their ticketing" after matches at the 2026 World Cup have featured unsegregated fan bases. Most group games have been played with supporters of both teams mingling at venues, in stark contrast to standard practice at major tournaments.
Evain cited the Netherlands vs. Japan match in Dallas on Sunday, where Dutch and Japanese fans sat together. He said FIFA "doesn't really know who has tickets here and there" due to permitting extensive ticket resales on secondary platforms.
"The possibility of fans from 'Team A' in the middle of the crowd of 'Team B' is stronger than ever before," Evain stated. He noted that FIFA's lack of control over resold tickets means the organization has limited ability to mitigate the security risk.
The absence of segregation also extended to flag restrictions at some stadiums, with Dallas Stadium reportedly preventing supporters from displaying flags before matches.