Presales opened Tuesday for Vancouver’s FIFA Fan Festival, with general admission lawn tickets selling for as much as $79 on game days. Officials have promised free viewing of FIFA World Cup matches at the festival, located at the Pacific National Exhibition where screens will be set up at various locations on the grounds. But the premium viewing spots will be at the venue’s amphitheatre stage, separated into two categories: reserved seats and general admission lawn access. Depending on the date, presale seats range from $56 to $126, while available lawn tickets range from $44 to $79. Both allow fast-tracked entry to the festival. Related: Mötley Crüe, Kx5 to headline FIFA Fan Festival Vancouver Reserved seats offer “comfort and style,” with food and beverages available for purchase from roaming vendors, according to the Ticket Leader website. Those with lawn tickets can “move, mingle, and catch all the action on the amphitheatre stage from multiple vantage points,” but have no fixed seating, while food and beverage options will be available “nearby.” Accessible seating options are also available by calling 604-252-3700. Multiple dates were already listed online as having “not many” tickets left by early Tuesday afternoon, hours after presales began. More expensive tickets are also available for Fan Festival concerts, including on July 12, when Mötley Crüe will be performing with Finger Eleven and Toque. Reserved seats cost as much as $244 on those dates, while general admission lawn access is $103. Related: Mostly paid seating planned for amphitheatre at FIFA Fan Festival The amphitheatre venue remains under construction months before the World Cup begins in June. Officials have said approximately one-quarter of the available spots at the venue—roughly 2,600—will be free on a first-come, first-served basis. Anne Kang, B.C.’s minister of tourism, arts, culture and sport, previously assured Fan Festival attendees that they will be able to watch the games “wherever you are” in the PNE. “You will be able to see a big screen, and you’ll be able to enjoy the games for free,” Kang said earlier this month. Outside of Vancouver, the B.C. government is spending $1.7 million to help fund free public events in 32 municipalities and First Nations across the province during the World Cup. Officials said those events will range from “soccer-themed community gatherings” to large-scale public viewing events. With files from CTV News Vancouver’s Martin MacMahon
