World Cup shakes off rough lead-up to achieve success in New York and New Jersey
Mario Kempes holds the trophy before the start of the World Cup final between Spain and Argentina at MetLife Stadium on Sunday. Credit: AP/Jacquelyn Martin
The lead-up to the 2026 World Cup and its eight games at MetLife Stadium came with headaches.
Whether it was having no general parking in the MetLife lots, the $150 NJ Transit tickets (which ultimately were reduced to $98) or FIFA’s astronomically-priced game tickets, fans had a lot to weigh.
But after the World Cup concluded Sunday at MetLife, the New York New Jersey host committee viewed it as a success. MetLife had eight consecutive sellouts with over 645,000 total fans, and the area generated a reported $2.1 billion in economic impact in the five group stage games alone.
"[Sunday’s] FIFA World Cup 2026 Final proved what we have always known: when the world comes together, there is no better stage than New York and New Jersey,” Alex Lasry, the CEO of the host committee, wrote in a statement.
How successful was the World Cup in New York and New Jersey? That remains to be seen.
“It was a success. I think the jury is going to be out on how big a success it was,” said Robert Boland, a sports law professor at Seton Hall Law School. “And I think after a really fitful start with a lot of negative publicity, certainly the games, the competition, the impact on the city and the number of events that took place in New York and New Jersey will be a net positive.
“Can I give it an A right now? Probably not. But it certainly looked like an F coming in, and it certainly delivered a B, probably, by the end of it. Maybe a little bit more.”
The jury will remain out, Boland said, because there are three parts to assess any mega event such as the World Cup. The first part: did the event happen safely? It did.
The next two questions are not 100% answered. Did it deliver on its potential, economically and practically? What’s its legacy?
Doug Logan, the first commissioner of Major League Soccer (from 1995-99), had a mixed view on the World Cup’s success. Logan, 83, said it was “vulgar” from a commercial standpoint, with FIFA’s greed stripping the game from the common man and instead putting it in the hands of the wealthy. He said the competition, though, was “fantastic.”
“I think on balance, it was a terrific, terrific few weeks this summer to watch some excellent soccer,” said Logan, who played high school soccer at the former La Salle Military Academy in Oakdale. “From a commercial standpoint, I've got my problems with it, and will continue to if FIFA continues to project avarice over the way that it conducts these competitions.”
The big question that many have wondered is if and how the U.S. can capitalize on the hype of the World Cup.
Logan thinks there will be an impact on soccer in the U.S. because of the World Cup, but he said “it'll be relatively small compared to people who expect breakthroughs. People's expectation levels when something like this happens go through the roof.”
He added that if people are looking for the World Cup to be replicated in MLS cities like Chicago and Columbus, Ohio, it’s “just not going to happen.”
That leads to Boland’s point about legacy. He mentioned how the birth of MLS was a direct result of the 1994 World Cup in the U.S. Logan noted it happened contractually, not organically, as part of an agreement to bring the Cup to America and now it is a multi-billion dollar league. He also mentioned the 1999 Women’s World Cup in the U.S., which was won by the U.S. and set the stage for women’s soccer to take off.
“I don't know if you'll find the same impact in this one." Boland said, "other than maybe it will come in the grassroots play. That kids will want to be a part of this and play this sport because they saw it, because it happened in their backyard.”
Evan Dabby is the CEO of New Jersey Youth Soccer (NJYS), the statewide governing body representing more than 400 clubs and 120,000 players. NJYS had a watch party for the final Sunday with the Jersey Shore BlueClaws at ShoreTown Ballpark in Lakewood, New Jersey, where kids were playing soccer all day in the outfield. NJYS also held a youth soccer day at the American Dream Mall on July 11 during the England vs. Norway quarterfinal match.
Dabby emphasized the importance of access to the game. He said New Jersey has more access than ever before because there’s more investment in soccer than ever before. He can see a tangible outcome with more kids playing soccer in the future.
“We certainly hope and believe so, and that will be the data that we'll see in the months ahead, and then certainly the years ahead,” Dabby said. “But we saw it in '94, and that was a massive jump . . . When you hear about the broadcast ratings and you hear about the passion that the country had to tune in and you see it on the field, you have to believe that it's going to be a positive and really another turning point for the sport.”
Ben Dickson is Newsday Sports' general assignment reporter. He joined Newsday’s high school sports staff in 2023 after graduating from Maryland, where he covered several of the Terrapins' teams.
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