Rio de Janeiro, Feb 28 (IANS): World football's governing body FIFA has made available an extra 42,308 tickets to the general public for June's Confederations Cup in Brazil.

The new allocation includes 3,166 tickets to the tournament opener between Brazil and Japan in Brasilia and a further 1,601 for the host nation's clash with Italy in Salvador, FIFA said on its website, reports Xinhua.

Both matches had been declared sold out when FIFA launched the second phase of sales Feb 15. Another 4,843 tickets will also be made available for the June 30 final at Rio de Janeiro's Maracana Stadium.

According to FIFA, the additional seats, to go on sale Thursday, come from pre-booked tickets that were not paid for ahead of this week's deadline. By Wednesday night, 475,389 Confederations Cup tickets had been sold, more than 64 percent of the overall number available.

The tournament will feature FIFA's six continental champions, hosts Brazil and European runners-up Italy.