Mexican fan who watched 16 matches in Qatar struggles for tickets at home

Wearing a big smile and trademark Mexican hat bearing the name of his country in red letters, Jesus Arturo Jauregui Sanchez was posing with people when I bumped into him in the middle of the night at Souq Waqif.

- Rituraj Borkakoty

The traditional Qatari market became a bustling hub for fans at the 2022 World Cup with people singing, dancing and beating drums until the wee hours of every night.

Mexico had long been knocked out of the tournament, but Sanchez was still there in Qatar. With a large Mexican flag draped around his shoulders, he was like a walking symbol of his country, sharing the joy of football with the fans from Morocco, France, Argentina, South Korea, Croatia and Brazil.

Now, three and a half years after Sanchez watched 16 matches in Qatar, he is struggling to get World Cup match tickets in his own country.

Mexico, the co-host alongside the US and Canada, are staging 13 of the 104 matches at the 2026 Fifa World Cup.

Nine of the 13 matches have already been played in the three Mexican host cities — Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey.

With just four matches remaining, the sense of desperation is unmistakable in Sanchez, who said he was lucky to be given a ticket by his brother for the second match of the tournament between South Korea and the Czech Republic.

According to a Reuters report, the ticket price in the 2026 edition of the World Cup is five times higher than the Qatar World Cup, denying a lot of Mexican fans an opportunity to witness the football carnival on their own soil.

“I couldn't get tickets for the opening match (between Mexico and South Africa) — they were simply too expensive. So, I ended up going to the South Korea vs the Czech Republic game. Luckily, my brother managed to get three tickets from the official website and gave me one, so at least I got to watch one match live,” Sanchez told the Khaleej Times over the phone from Puerto Vallarta, a popular Mexican resort town.