Published on 17 April 2026
Skyrocketing ticket prices won’t be the only thing that will empty the wallets of soccer fans attending World Cup matches at some venues in the United States this spring.
Transportation officials confirmed Friday that fans trying to get to MetLife Stadium from New York City can expect to pay $150 for round-trip train fare for each game.
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That’s about 12 times the regular $12.90 fare for the roughly 15-minute, 14 km (9-mile) ride from Penn Station in Manhattan to the stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. On-site parking will not be available for most fans, so New Jersey officials estimate that about 40,000 fans will use mass transit for each match.
The home stadium for both the NFL’s New York Giants and New York Jets is set to host eight World Cup matches, including the tournament final on July 19. Group-stage matches against football powerhouses Brazil, France, Germany and England, as well as other countries, begin on June 13.
New Jersey Governor Mickey Sherrill has suggested that this additional fee is necessary to ensure that travelers from her state are not stuck with a “tab for years to come” when the United States returns to host the World Cup for the first time since 1994.
NJ Transit officials said it would cost $62 million to transport fans to and from the stadium for the duration of the tournament, and outside grants could only cover $14 million of those anticipated expenses.
“This is not a price increase,” NJ Transit President and CEO Chris Colluri told reporters Friday. “We’re literally trying to recover our costs.”
Taking public transportation to World Cup matches in the Boston suburbs would also be expensive.
Officials announced this week that express buses from various locations to Gillette Stadium, home of the NFL’s New England Patriots, will cost $95.
And thousands of fans have already purchased $80 round-trip train tickets from Boston to the commuter rail station near the stadium. That’s four times the $20 riders are typically charged for round-trip tickets during game days and other special events. Unlike MetLife, Gillette is not within walking distance of downtown. The stadium is in Foxborough, a city about 48 km (30 mi) south of Boston.
Other World Cup host cities, including Los Angeles and Philadelphia, have pledged to keep their transit fares unchanged, noting that the U.S. government has provided nearly $100 million in transit grants to host cities to provide increased bus and rail service.
Kansas City is running shuttles from locations around the city to Arrowhead Stadium, costing only $15 roundtrip. It is also offering a free bus from the airport to the city. Houston, which is hosting seven World Cup matches, said it has added buses and train cars to serve fans, but intends to keep fares at the current level: $1.25 for buses and light rail trains, and park-and-ride options from $2 to $4.50.
But New Jersey’s governor, a Democrat who took office in January, said his administration inherited a compromise where international soccer’s governing body FIFA contributed “$0 to transportation” while leaving the state’s chronically cash-strapped transit agency “stuck with a $48m bill.”
“FIFA should pay for the ride. But if they don’t – I’m not going to let New Jersey take me for the ride,” Sherrill said in a social media post on Wednesday.
FIFA has expressed displeasure at the suggestion, noting that agreements signed with World Cup host cities in 2018 called for free transport for fans to all matches. It was also argued that there is no need to pay for fan transportation to any other major event held at MetLife.
“We are deeply surprised by today’s stance on fan transportation from the NJ Governor,” the organization said in a statement Thursday, before news of the fare began circulating. “FIFA worked for years with host cities on transportation and mobility plans, including advocating for millions of dollars in federal funding to support host cities with transportation.”
New York Governor Kathy Hochul also objected to MetLife’s huge fare increase.
“Charging over $100 for a short train trip seems excessive to me,” the Democrat posted on Twitter earlier this week.
The pricing jump was first reported by sports outlet The Athletic.
Alternatives to taking the train to games at MetLife Stadium will be almost as expensive. A limited number of parking spots are being sold in advance at the nearby American Dream Mall, currently priced at $225.
