FIFA has revealed the reason behind apparent empty stands during one of the World Cup matches, despite confirming the accuracy of high official attendance figures and clarifying the reality of television footage that sparked debate about vacant seats in the stadium.
FIFA affirmed the official attendance figures for the match between South Korea and the Czech Republic, held in the Mexican city of Guadalajara as part of the World Cup competition, after the appearance of numerous empty seats raised questions about crowd numbers.
The governing body stated that the match was attended by 44,985 supporters inside a stadium with a capacity of 45,664, representing an attendance rate of 98.5%, despite television images showing vacant areas in the stands.
FIFA attributed the appearance of empty seats to some fans preferring to stand in concourses and other areas inside the stadium rather than remaining in their assigned seats throughout the match.
The governing body said in an explanatory statement: "Official attendance figures reflect the number of tickets scanned and the number of spectators inside the stadium, not visual assessments of seat occupancy at any given moment during the match."
Official tournament figures revealed that all tickets for 29 matches had sold out before the World Cup kicked off, while tickets remained available to fans for 75 other matches.
Ticket prices for the current edition of the World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico drew criticism before FIFA president Gianni Infantino defended the pricing policy, insisting that some tournament tickets are on sale for less than the cost of attending college football matches in the United States.