| Fans feel 'gouged' by £111 World Cup train tickets from Manhattan to New Jersey Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 19:52, 17th April 2026 |     |
From the BBC:
Fans feel 'gouged' by £111 World Cup train tickets
Fans will have to pay more than $100 to catch a train to MetLife Stadium for the eight World Cup fixtures
The Football Supporters' Association says fans are being "fleeced" and "gouged" after the announcement that a 30-minute train journey to a World Cup game at MetLife Stadium will cost $150 (£111).
The journey from Penn Station in Manhattan to the venue in New Jersey, which is about 18 miles, shows more than an 11-fold increase on the usual $12.90 (£9.50) for a return fare.
There are no concession prices, so children and seniors must also pay the full $150. Shuttle bus tickets are priced at $80 (£59). Both train and bus tickets are non-transferable and non-refundable. Reports this week suggested the price would be $100 (£74), but on Friday operators NJ Transit announced the fare would be higher.
MetLife Stadium - which will be named New York/New Jersey Stadium during the World Cup as part of Fifa's policy on corporate sponsored names - will host eight matches, including an England group game, and the final on 19 July.
This comes after train fares for matches at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, outside Boston, were vastly increased to $80 (£59), with coach tickets costing $95 (£70).
Thomas Concannon, who leads the FSA's England fans' group, told BBC Sport it is "incredibly disappointing" to be hit in the pocket again - on top of the high ticket prices for the matches. "The price is obviously astronomical in terms of what you would expect to pay going to a match, going to a tournament," Concannon said. "This is completely out of the norm from previous tournaments.
"You're supposed to be welcoming fans from around the world. And I think at this stage, fans couldn't feel less welcome. I don't think anyone this time was expecting transport to be free. But we weren't expecting to be gouged, either. That's ultimately what's happened here, and that's just extremely disappointing. We don't understand why."
Travel at the World Cups in Russia and Qatar was free, and the United States had committed to offer the same perk in its host agreement with Fifa.
On Wednesday, New Jersey governor Mikie Sherrill criticised Fifa for not providing any funding. The governor said she would not "stick New Jersey commuters with that tab for years to come" and "Fifa should pay for the rides".
But Fifa responded, saying it had already "recognised the financial strain" on host cities and said travel could - and should - be offered "at cost".
(BBC article continues)
Fans will have to pay more than $100 to catch a train to MetLife Stadium for the eight World Cup fixtures
The Football Supporters' Association says fans are being "fleeced" and "gouged" after the announcement that a 30-minute train journey to a World Cup game at MetLife Stadium will cost $150 (£111).
The journey from Penn Station in Manhattan to the venue in New Jersey, which is about 18 miles, shows more than an 11-fold increase on the usual $12.90 (£9.50) for a return fare.
There are no concession prices, so children and seniors must also pay the full $150. Shuttle bus tickets are priced at $80 (£59). Both train and bus tickets are non-transferable and non-refundable. Reports this week suggested the price would be $100 (£74), but on Friday operators NJ Transit announced the fare would be higher.
MetLife Stadium - which will be named New York/New Jersey Stadium during the World Cup as part of Fifa's policy on corporate sponsored names - will host eight matches, including an England group game, and the final on 19 July.
This comes after train fares for matches at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, outside Boston, were vastly increased to $80 (£59), with coach tickets costing $95 (£70).
Thomas Concannon, who leads the FSA's England fans' group, told BBC Sport it is "incredibly disappointing" to be hit in the pocket again - on top of the high ticket prices for the matches. "The price is obviously astronomical in terms of what you would expect to pay going to a match, going to a tournament," Concannon said. "This is completely out of the norm from previous tournaments.
"You're supposed to be welcoming fans from around the world. And I think at this stage, fans couldn't feel less welcome. I don't think anyone this time was expecting transport to be free. But we weren't expecting to be gouged, either. That's ultimately what's happened here, and that's just extremely disappointing. We don't understand why."
Travel at the World Cups in Russia and Qatar was free, and the United States had committed to offer the same perk in its host agreement with Fifa.
On Wednesday, New Jersey governor Mikie Sherrill criticised Fifa for not providing any funding. The governor said she would not "stick New Jersey commuters with that tab for years to come" and "Fifa should pay for the rides".
But Fifa responded, saying it had already "recognised the financial strain" on host cities and said travel could - and should - be offered "at cost".
(BBC article continues)
