Argentina’s first game since the World Cup draws 1.5 million ticket requests

Tickets for Argentina’s first game since winning the World Cup sold out as more than 1,500,000 people tried to buy them despite high prices in a country struggling with rising inflation.

The game between Argentina and Panama will be played on March 23 at the Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires, the largest in the country with a capacity of 83,000 spectators.

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Ticket prices, which ranged from 12,000 to 49,000 Argentine pesos (US$59 to 241), failed to dampen demand with a virtual queue of 1,550,000 people.

The desire to see Lionel Messi’s team also spread in the local and international press. Argentina Football Confederation President Claudio Tapia said the game generated the “highest media demand in history” with over 131,000 accreditation requests.

“We would like to be able to fulfill all of them, but we would need two rivers [Monumental] Stadiums, only for journalists. The madness for Argentina is absolute,” Tapia said on Twitter.

The friendly will be Argentina’s first game in front of their fans since beating France on penalties in last year’s World Cup final in Qatar, winning the title for the first time in 36 years and sparking huge celebrations across the country.

Also, on March 28th, Argentina will host Curacao, in the province of Santiago del Estero, in front of 30,000 fans.