Mayor Mamdani and Gov. Hochul unveiled five free viewing sites with live matches, food, and entertainment this summer.
11:02 PM
New York City will host five free fan zones across its boroughs this summer to allow residents to watch World Cup matches without paying stadium ticket prices, Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Monday.
The free events will feature live match viewings, cultural programming, local food vendors, and interactive experiences. Gov. Hochul is directing $20 million to cover the cost of the fan sites.
The five locations are Rockefeller Center in Manhattan, the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, Brooklyn Bridge Park in Brooklyn, Bronx Terminal Market near Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, and Staten Island University Hospital Community Park in Staten Island, home to the minor league Staten Island Ferryhawks baseball team.
In Staten Island, the fan zone will run from June 29 through July 2. The stadium is also receiving a new LED scoreboard as part of the arrangement, with the upgrade partly funded through a partnership with the Economic Development Corporation.
Mayor Mamdani said the events were initially not intended to be free, but he and the governor decided the World Cup "should belong to the world" and made affordability a priority. "When I think back on my first World Cup, some of my most meaningful memories weren't in the stadium, they were in the fan zones, surrounded by thousands of people brought together by a pure love of the game," Mamdani said. "That's what we're building here: a World Cup that belongs to New Yorkers."
A separate fan event will be held at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey, where the New York Red Bulls play, with a $10 admission fee. World Cup matches will be played at multiple venues across New York and New Jersey, including the final.
The announcement comes less than 50 days before the World Cup begins. Alex Lasry, CEO of the NYNJ Host Committee, participated in the announcement alongside Mamdani and Hochul.
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