NEW YORK (AP) — Residents of New York City will have an opportunity to secure affordable tickets for this summer’s expensive World Cup matches.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani revealed Thursday that 1,000 tickets priced at $50 each will be offered to residents of the city with over 8 million people for the globe’s most-watched sporting competition.
“To put that into perspective, that is five lattes in New York City,” Mamdani quipped from a bar in Harlem’s Little Senegal neighborhood alongside U.S. men’s national team star Timothy Weah.
These discounted tickets will cover seven out of eight matches scheduled at the approximately 82,000-capacity MetLife Stadium, situated across the river from Manhattan in New Jersey. The only excluded game is the highly sought-after July 19 championship match, where certain seats are currently priced at nearly $33,000.
According to the mayor, the tickets will also come with complimentary round-trip bus service to the venue for purchasers. Distribution will occur through a lottery system beginning May 25.
Addressing ongoing worries about the extremely high ticket costs for matches, Mamdani stated the city would implement measures to guarantee their distributed tickets reach New York City residents and avoid resale on secondary markets.
He explained the tickets would be non-transferable and that city officials would employ a “variety of ways” to confirm residency. Additionally, tickets will only be given directly to fans as they board buses on match days.
“We are making sure that working people will not be priced out of the game that they helped to create,” Mamdani said.
The Democrat, who began serving in January, noted this initiative demonstrates how his administration extends beyond making daily necessities like housing and food more affordable.
“It extends to making it possible for every New Yorker to take part in the things that make us human,” he said.
During his campaign, Mamdani had urged FIFA, soccer’s international governing organization, to reduce costs for New Yorkers attending matches by reserving 15% of tickets at reduced prices for residents. He had also started a petition urging FIFA to abandon its demand-based pricing strategy.
According to the mayor’s office, the $50 tickets originate from allocations given to New York and New Jersey’s combined host committee rather than directly from FIFA.
Earlier, FIFA had offered some $60 tickets for every tournament game in North America following criticism over extremely high ticket prices.
However, those discounted tickets were distributed to national federations of competing teams, with those organizations determining how to allocate them to dedicated supporters who had attended previous home and away matches.
Apart from the final game, the home venue for both the NFL’s New York Giants and New York Jets will host five group-stage World Cup matches and two elimination round games. Group-stage competitions featuring soccer giants Brazil, France, Germany and England, among other countries, commence June 13.
