USA Leads 2018 World Cup Ticket Sales Among Visiting Fans

While the United States did not qualify for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, no foreign nation has generated better ticket sales for the event than the U.S.

According to ESPN.com's Mark Ogden, FIFA confirmed that Americans have bought 88,825 World Cup tickets, which is second in overall ticket sales behind only host Russia's 871,797.

FIFA added that 2.4 million tickets have been sold for the World Cup overall, meaning Americans have a 3.7 percent share of the purchased tickets.

World Cup favorite Brazil is third behind Russia and the United States with 72,512 tickets sold.

The 2018 World Cup marks the first time that Team USA will miss out on the prestigious tournament since 1986.

The United States had qualified for seven consecutive World Cups since missing out on nine straight from 1954-1986.

Although failing to qualify for the World Cup was a major blow to American soccer, the strong interest in the 2018 World Cup from American fans could bode well for the United States' case to host the 2026 World Cup.

A joint bid between the United States, Canada and Mexico will go up against Morocco for the right to host the 2026 World Cup. The vote is set to be held Wednesday.