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Phil Murphy talks 2026 FIFA World Cup at NJ budget address
During his 2026 New Jersey budget address, Gov. Phil Murphy discussed the upcoming FIFA World Cup plans.
Though the 2026 FIFA World Cup is still more than a year away, it’s been costing New Jersey taxpayers money for a few years already.
Trenton lawmakers have dispatched a total of $67.5 million to a New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority fund for “International Events, Improvements & Attractions” over the last three state budgets.
So far, the NJSEA has spent more than $32 million on the tournament. With another $32.4 million under contract, the NJSEA will spend as much as $64.4 million on the event, which will feature eight matches including the final at MetLife Stadium.
Though they’re not part of next year’s tournament, another $4 million will be used to “assist MetLife Stadium with securing and hosting upcoming FIFA Club World Cup 2025 matches.”
Considered by many a test run for next summer’s main event, the Club World Cup features club teams from professional leagues across the globe, as opposed to the national teams coming next year. This summer, East Rutherford will host nine matches, including two semifinals and the final.
More funding coming this year
Gov. Phil Murphy’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2026 — which is being negotiated in the Legislature now and will run from July 1 through June 30, 2026 — includes another $10 million for the international events fund.
Murphy highlighted the tournament during his annual budget address this year, calling it part of his “dream for New Jersey’s future.”
“It is a future that will begin next year, when millions of soccer fanatics — from around the globe — be drawn to our region to watch the world’s greatest game, on the world’s biggest stage, with the 2026 FIFA World Cup Final at MetLife Stadium,” he said.
What’s the breakdown on what’s been spent?
Here are some of the previous and upcoming expenditures:
- Nearly $16 million alone — $15,998,602 — has gone to modifying the field at MetLife Stadium to meet the requirements established by the international soccer organization.
- Another $1.066 million has been used for the new pedestrian bridge at the sports complex. That bridge is expected to cost $33.5 million by the time it is completed.
- There’s also a $15 million loan to the regional host committee, to be paid back by the end of 2026.
- Additional state funding — including $10 million in American Rescue Plan funds and a $25 million grant from the New Jersey Department of Transportation to the NJSEA — is also to be spent on the World Cup.
Ground has not yet been broken for the pedestrian bridge, and it’s unclear exactly how much more work will be done to the field during the next 14 months.
Bridge construction costs are paid out through the international fund, the Transportation Department grant and pandemic relief funds as construction progresses, said Brian Aberback, a spokesperson for the authority.
That $32 million spent by the NJSEA so far isn’t the only taxpayer money being invested in preparing for next year’s global spectacle.
About $5 million of the state’s American Rescue Plan funding is being used to buy trucks and equipment needed to maintain the property in and around the stadium.
Beyond the NJSEA
A transitway is also in the works at NJ Transit. Initially to be a dedicated route for buses that will shuttle fans featuring a new, permanent bus terminal at MetLife Stadium, that plan has been scrapped in favor of a pavilion or tent to shelter waiting riders.
The estimated cost of construction for the transitway is around $100 million, with some of the money that had been earmarked for the terminal being used to obtain access to a property nearby where buses can be stored. The state Transportation Department has also paid $35 million for NJ Transit to develop designs for expanding its transit system to serve the venue.
Though no estimated cost for the tournament has been made public, the total spent or contracted currently sits at $207 million, and the tournament doesn’t kick off for more than a year.
Alex Lasry, who was appointed CEO of the host committee in February, said planners are “projecting $2 billion to $4 billion of economic impact” as well as thousands of jobs and “free marketing and advertising” from both visitors and the tournament broadcast.
Lasry wouldn’t say exactly how much it’s expected to cost but did say it is “expensive,” although he sees it as “more so an investment.”
The bid for the matches to be played in East Rutherford was part of a partnership between the state of New Jersey and New York City. The host city obligations are the responsibility of both New Jersey and New York City, and officials have previously said costs would be split with New York City.
There is still no formal agreement in place with New York City.
It’s unclear whether the immigration and border security initiatives of the Trump administration will affect the crowds trying to attend the tournaments both this year and next year, but President Donald Trump did attend the Club World Cup draw in December and said he “will try to be there.”
Trump has hosted FIFA President Gianni Infantino at his Mar-a-Lago Club and the White House. Infantino also attended Trump’s second inauguration.
Katie Sobko covers the New Jersey Statehouse. Email: sobko@northjersey.com
