Longtime soccer broadcaster Ian Darke defended Timothy Weah’s criticism of 2026 World Cup ticket prices, questioning why USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino would tell his player not to speak out about a widely-held concern.
“Timothy Weah is right,” Darke wrote on X. “World Cup tickets are too costly by far for ordinary fans. Why does his USA boss Mauricio Pochettino think he should not express a universally-held opinion? What boat is Weah rocking by empathising with fans?”
Timothy Weah is right. World Cup tickets are too costly by far for ordinary fans. Why does his USA boss Mauricio Pochettino think he should not express a universally-held opinion ? What boat is Weah rocking by empathising with fans ?
— Ian Darke (@IanDarke) February 2, 2026
Weah told French outlet Le Dauphiné last month that World Cup tickets are “too expensive” and that “lots of real fans will miss matches.”
“Football should still be enjoyed by everyone,” Weah said. “It is the most popular sport. This World Cup will be good, but it will be more of a show. I am just a bit disappointed by the ticket prices.”
As noted by ESPN, FIFA is charging up to $8,680 list price per ticket for the tournament, which runs from June 11 to July 19 across the United States, Mexico, and Canada. And while cheaper options surely exist, average ticket prices have drawn widespread criticism from supporter groups around the world, some of whom have filed complaints with FIFA.
Pochettino wasn’t interested in his player joining that criticism, as he dismissed Weah’s comments during a Zoom press conference last week.
“First of all, I think players need to talk on the pitch, playing football, not outside of,” Pochettino said. “It is not his duty to evaluate the price of the ticket. And then also my job is, my duty is to prepare the team, the U.S. men’s national team in the best way to perform. We are not politicians.”
Pochettino added that FIFA’s decisions are “their responsibility to explain why” and that his team needs to “trust in the organization that is in charge of soccer or football around the world that they are going to do the right things.”
Pochettino’s job is to prepare the team. Fair enough. But Weah’s job isn’t just to play football and shut up. He’s a public figure with a platform and one of the few high-profile players willing to publicly criticize FIFA’s pricing.
Darke isn’t the only prominent voice to weigh in. USWNT legend Carli Lloyd defended Pochettino on social media, writing that players should “let your play do the talking” and not waste “mental space worrying about things that you can’t control.”
He’s right….let your play do the talking. He’s sending a subtle message to all of the players. They’ve got a major World Cup coming up why take up mental space worrying about things that you can’t control. https://t.co/esF8A3YdUc
— Carli Lloyd (@CarliLloyd) January 30, 2026
That’s one way to look at it.
The other is that staying quiet is how FIFA gets away with decisions that price out ordinary fans. And Darke — who spent his career covering World Cups where ordinary fans could actually attend — knows the difference between a tournament that celebrates soccer and one that treats it like a luxury experience. So if Weah pointing that out creates distractions, the blame should belong with FIFA.