Do fans really want it?

Still, it remains unclear how much of an appetite there is for another soccer tournament in a calendar that has reached saturation point.

So a crowd of more than 60,000 at the Hard Rock Stadium likely came as a relief to FIFA, though it is not known how many of those in attendance paid anything like the $349 being quoted for seats in December.

FIFA has not offered definitive numbers on the amount of tickets sold for the tournament as a whole and  as the opening game approached. But there were only pockets of empty seats in the stands, with many red-shirted fans of Al Ahly in attendance.

“We’ve been looking forward to it for a long time,” said Peter Sadek, a fan originally from Egypt who now lives in Orlando. “At least 50 more just from our area (are coming). It’s been bubbling up for a long time and you can see how many are here.”

Other Al Ahly fans had traveled directly from Egypt, with red shirts outnumbering the pink of Miami in parts of the stadium.