The World Cup in New York and New Jersey, by the Numbers

When officials announced that the FIFA World Cup was coming to the New York City region, their ambitions were lofty. The host committee predicted 1.2 million visitors and $3.3 billion in economic activity tied to the tournament.

That positive energy was reflected over the past few weeks on the streets of Manhattan and at boisterous watch parties all over the city. Though the eight local games were being played at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, their proximity helped make New York feel like the center of the universe.

As the tournament came to a close, the host committee said it was on track to exceed expectations. The committee said that more than 640,000 fans had attended the New Jersey games, and that the first five games alone had brought in $1.2 billion in direct visitor spending and a total economic impact of $2.1 billion.

Still, some experts expressed skepticism.

“There is no question that there is a positive economic impact, but the projections were too ambitious,” said Steven Fulop, the former mayor of Jersey City and current president of the Partnership for New York City, an influential business group.

A final accounting has yet to be released. But here’s a closer look at how hosting the World Cup went for New York and New Jersey.

Hotels expected a surge in guests, but some fell short …

Hotels in New York City were on track to bring in $100 million to $150 million in additional revenue during the tournament, compared with the same period last year, according to the Hotel Association of New York City. That was far lower than the group’s projection of $250 million to $300 million.

Still, room revenue for city hotels was up 21 percent from June 8 to July 4, compared with the same period last year, according to the governor’s office. In the Mid-Hudson and Hudson Valley regions it was up 18 percent and on Long Island 24 percent, the office said.

In New Jersey, hotels saw a revenue increase of more than $40 million during the tournament compared with the same period last year, according to the New Jersey Economic Development Authority.

… while Airbnb saw a boost.

The home rental company said bookings had been strong. But demand was largely concentrated in New Jersey, in part because of strict regulations limiting short-term rentals in New York City, according to AirDNA, an unaffiliated company that gathers and analyzes data on short-term rental listings.

Demand for rentals in New York City was down by as much as 8 percent compared with last year for the games leading up to the final, while in Jersey City and Newark it was up by as much as 24 percent, according to AirDNA.

The final provided a boost in New Jersey: Demand was up 37 percent in Jersey City and Newark compared with last year, the AirDNA data showed. In New York City, however, demand was up just 3 percent.

Times Square was packed with out-of-towners …

There were 254,400 pedestrians on average in the tourist mecca each day from mid-June to mid-July, up 7 percent from the same time last year, according to the Times Square Alliance. The daily peak was 305,300 pedestrians.

In one viral moment, hundreds of Norway fans gathered in Times Square in their red jerseys, rowing and chanting in unison.

… but some tourism businesses were disappointed.

Ben Gollan, a popular guide who leads walking tours of New York City sandwich spots, worked with Airbnb to take fans to a game. Some foreign visitors had booked group tours in the city, he said, but there seemed to be less interest in tourism not related to the World Cup.

“We didn’t get the same huge boom that other categories, like sports bars, received,” he said. “It was good, but definitely not as great as we had all hoped.”

Managers and workers at souvenir shops around Times Square also said the World Cup had not provided the lift they had anticipated.

MD Masum, who manages a gift shop at Eighth Avenue and West 38th Street, said that while the Knicks’ championship run in June had been great for business, “the World Cup souvenirs are not selling.”

Bars and restaurants in New York cashed in on watch parties …

The Joyce Public House on West 39th Street in Manhattan already had a reputation as a pro-Argentina bar. Tony Colbert, the owner, said that on days Argentina played, it had to turn patrons away — and that even on other days, business was still very good.

“The Germans were in here singing,” he said, “and the Norwegians were amazing.”

As of early July, on-premise beer sales were up 14 percent over last year in the New York/New Jersey market, according to the Beer Institute, a trade group.

… while businesses near the stadium were a mixed bag.

Svetlana Dentzau, a manager at Redd’s Bar and Restaurant in Carlstadt, N.J., less than half a mile from the stadium, said business had boomed. A tent was erected for watch parties, and a shuttle ferried fans to the stadium.

“It’s been great for us, very busy,” she said.

But farther west, along Route 17 in Carlstadt, Steve’s Sizzling Steaks had some of its weakest business since the pandemic. Blaze Damiani, the owner, blamed warnings from government officials about possible traffic snarls in the area.

“We were down 40 percent on the days of the games,” he said, adding: “Our regular customers were afraid to come.”

New Jersey transportation officials and the host committee said in a joint statement that their messaging was part of an overall “mobility plan” to prevent congestion around the stadium.

Traveling to the games was easier than some expected …

NJ Transit, the state agency tasked with delivering the largest share of riders from Manhattan to MetLife, angered soccer fans when it set the price of a round-trip train ticket at $98, up from about $13. But, barring some first-day confusion, transportation to and from the games went fairly smoothly.

NJ Transit said it carried between 22,000 and 26,000 fans to and from each game — a total of roughly 185,000 tickets. The average train ride from Penn Station to the stadium took about 35 minutes, several minutes less than similar rides to past events, according to Kris Kolluri, the agency’s president.

“I think we did exceptionally well, moving a record number of people at the fastest pace we have in the history of the agency,” he said on Monday.

A $20 bus service sold nearly 120,000 tickets, according to Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office.

Still, initial plans had called for as many as 40,000 fans per game to take the train, meaning more fans drove to the stadium than expected, even though parking near MetLife was limited and prices for a space started at $225. That led to major congestion around the stadium, including during some rush-hour commutes.

… but many regular commuters felt overlooked.

The NJ Transit portion of Penn Station, the busiest transit hub in the nation, was closed for several hours to regular riders on game days. The inconvenience was compounded by a number of hourslong delays on sweltering days.

“Were there delays? Absolutely,” Mr. Kolluri said, but he rejected the notion that the agency had prioritized soccer fans above commuters.

NJ Transit will now have to defend its decision to raise ticket prices, despite selling fewer than it needed to cover a projected $31.5 million in tournament-related costs. A final accounting won’t be available for three weeks, Mr. Kolluri said, but he said the agency was prepared to cover any shortfall in the final budget.

Citi Bike had its biggest month …

New York City’s bike share system reached its highest monthly ridership ever in June with nearly 5.5 million trips.

The number of domestic visitors using Citi Bike in June was up 33 percent, to 179,000 rides, compared with 136,000 last year. International visitors rose by 21 percent to 72,000 rides, up from about 60,000 last June.

… and Uber also got a ton of business.

The ride share company, which was an official partner of the host committee, said it completed 42,000 trips during eight games. That’s roughly twice as many as the host committee had expected, and doesn’t include another 15,000 riders who opted to take an Uber shuttle bus service back to New York for $29 a seat.

The dating pool expanded …

The dating app Tinder said there had been a flood of out-of-town users in host cities, including a 35 percent lift in international visitors in the New York region on the day of the Brazil-Morocco game at MetLife.

Emma Oyomba, 31, who lives in Hell’s Kitchen in Manhattan, said she had seen more international users on Tinder and Hinge, and that watch parties were another opportunity to meet people. Between the Knicks and the World Cup, she said, even introverts like her were going out night after night.

“It brought out spontaneity and living in the moment, and the energy and the vibe have carried through the summer,” she said.

… and some local fans snagged affordable jerseys and tickets.

Mr. Mamdani, an avid soccer fan, became a prominent booster of the World Cup, selling retro soccer jerseys at a city store in Lower Manhattan and $50 game tickets via a lottery.

Bruno Borges, a Brazilian designer who lives in Brooklyn, waited in line for hours in the scorching sun to secure one of the $50 striped jerseys. Resellers later listed them online at steep prices, but Mr. Borges said he would not sell his, not even for $1,000.

“They look amazing,” he said. “In 10 or 15 years, I want to look back at it and say, ‘Ah, that was just yesterday.’”

Still, questions remain about the cost to taxpayers.

New York and New Jersey were expected to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to support the World Cup — including building a new pedestrian bridge to the stadium, hosting watch events and providing additional police officers and transit service.

New York City spent $138 million on police overtime in June, compared with $96 million in June 2025, according to preliminary figures from the city comptroller’s office. (That includes extra deployments for Knicks-related events and other occasions.)

The New York City comptroller, Mark Levine, found that the World Cup could help the city collect between $26 million and $44 million in additional sales tax.

Republicans in New Jersey have bristled over the costs to their state — and FIFA’s profits.

Gov. Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat, said she wished the host committee had done more fund-raising to offset transit costs, but that her focus had been on making sure people could get to and from the stadium safely and that visitors could support local businesses.

“I would love to think there was a world where somebody signed a contract where FIFA would do some of this, but I don’t think that’s realistic,” she said in an interview on Monday.

“It’s a really complicated, tough time, here and across the world,” she added, “and I think this World Cup brought people from across the world together in a way we just haven’t seen recently, and it was also something that everyone could just feel good about.”

Luís Cabral, an economics professor at New York University, said that even if the economic effects were more modest than advertised, the cultural impact had been significant, reinforcing the idea that the city is a melting pot.

“For all of the diasporas in New York City, this has been a feast and a celebration,” Mr. Cabral said.

Reporting was contributed by Claire Fahy, Mihir Zaveri, Maria Cramer and Tracey Tully.