Over 10,000 empty seats have marred two of the first eight World Cup games - Algeria and Slovenia with a mere 30,356 of 41,733 seats filled in Polokwane, and South Korea versus Greece,  with just 31,513 of the 42,486 seats filled. Empty seats have also been visible at games FIFA  declared  sell-outs, and tickets were readily available at way below face value in Rustenburg for England’s game on Saturday night. According to the UK Daily Telegraph: Fifa had warned before the Port Elizabeth match that 3,000 tickets were unsold but the sight of 7,000 additional empty seats shocked organisers. An investigation has revealed that hundreds of ticket-holders were unable to get to the game when buses laid on to transport them failed to arrive, and thousands more simply failed to take up their ticket."

FIFA, soccer's global governing body and the organizers of the World Cup, told the Associated Press it is investigating why a section of seats at Soccer City Stadium was unoccupied during Friday's World Cup opener between South Africa and Mexico.

The World Cup is the first to be held in Africa and the government has spent about 43 billion rand (€5 billion) on stadiums, transportation and other infrastructure in preparation for the tournament.