With only days to go before the World Cup, some people in New Jersey are fuming about how much the tournament is going to cost the state — and making their feelings known.
MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
And this should be an exciting time for New Jersey. The state is set to host eight matches for the World Cup, eight including the marquee event, the final. So why are so many residents upset? It turns out quite a few think New Jersey got a raw deal. NPR’s Rafael Nam has the story.
RAFAEL NAM, BYLINE: Driving home on a weekday afternoon, state Senator Declan O’Scanlon is mad, real mad. And it’s not because he hates soccer.
DECLAN O’SCANLON: My taxpayers are getting ripped off. And we are.
NAM: O’Scanlon represents the same district around central New Jersey where he was born. To him, it’s a case of basic fairness. New Jersey has spent at least $100 million to host the games. FIFA, which runs the world cup, is set to earn $11 billion from the tournament, and none of that money will be shared with New Jersey.
O’SCANLON: We’re not going to get any great economic windfall. There’s not going to be a ton of people here spending a ton of money. It’s not going to happen.
NAM: That’s because O’Scanlon thinks most people are probably going to spend their time in New York. FIFA even markets the venue for its soccer games as New York New Jersey, with a lot of pictures of the Manhattan skyline. You can guess how the senator feels about that.
O’SCANLON: It’s a double kick in the throat. The billing has New York first. Sorry. We’re footing the bill for the most part, and it’s in New Jersey.
NAM: New Jersey fought hard to become a World Cup host back in 2018 under a different governor. But in 2026, that bill is adding up. Hosting is expensive. Security costs are high. Train stations have to be spruced up. And even if the costs end up being only $100 million, that’s big money for states. Professor Danielle Zanzalari at Seton Hall University has studied the state’s finances. She’s also a New Jerseyan concerned about where her taxes are going.
DANIELLE ZANZALARI: So, like, when you see these numbers, like $100 million, you’re like, my gosh, this could fund, like, all of the issues with education for our youth, but we’re spending it so people can, you know, go to football game.
NAM: FIFA argues it’s not just a football game, or soccer, as it’s called in America. Yes, host cities have to shoulder most of the costs. And yes, almost all the revenue goes to FIFA. But in exchange, cities get to host big stars like Cristiano Ronaldo in the biggest global tournament. Zanzalari thinks that’s ridiculous.
ZANZALARI: You know, it makes sense for places like Qatar that are trying to, like, rebrand an image, maybe increase tourism. But there’s no one that is finding out about New York City because of the World Cup.
NAM: FIFA estimates the U.S. economy will earn about $30 billion. But NPR talked to half a dozen economists, and not a single one would vouch for any of the numbers. Zanzalari herself doesn’t see much upside of that for New Jersey. Why would visitors have a slice of pizza here when they can have one in Times Square, she wonders. And the worst thing – the state’s transit system has been making upgrades to its train network for the expected visitors, and it’s telling New Jerseyans, it may be hard for them to get to New York.
ZANZALARI: They actually said don’t come into the city. I mean, that’s insane.
NAM: New Jersey has tried to make up for some of the costs. It made headlines by trying to charge $150 for train tickets for soccer fans before lowering them to 98. But perhaps the biggest issue for the 11 American cities hosting World Cup games is that it’s hard to know how much all of this is going to cost. Money for the World Cup gets tucked into state budgets, some of it here, some of it there, and pretty soon, O’Scanlon says, it’s impossible to track.
O’SCANLON: We’ll never know exactly how much this event is costing the taxpayers in New Jersey.
NAM: And that’s the worry in New Jersey. One day, the World Cup will end and FIFA will move on. New Jerseyans, though, will likely still be tallying up the costs. Rafael Nam, NPR News.
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