What to Expect as New Jersey Hosts the World Cup

Residents near World Cup venues are bracing for an influx of people, traffic and economic activity generated by the most-watched sporting event around the world.

In New Jersey, most of the state is bracketed by the games at MetLife Stadium—including the July 19 World Cup final—and Lincoln Financial Field to the south in Philadelphia. The tournament also overlaps with celebrations for America’s 250th anniversary and regular Jersey Shore summer traffic, upping the ante.

To better understand how the World Cup games could impact our region’s economy and infrastructure, we spoke to two experts. Hear from Kevin Corbett, former president and CEO of NJ Transit and a senior fellow for transportation studies with Rutgers Center for Advanced Infrastructure & Transportation; and Arthur Guarino, associate professor of finance and economics with Rutgers Business School.

You can’t drive or walk to the MetLife Stadium. The only way to access the stadium is by bus or train. Will this mitigate the traffic impact on our roads? 

Corbett: While not certain, the prospects are good. A lot of work went into improving customer satisfaction with New Jersey Transit (NJT) service under Gov. Murphy. NJT kept improving service over several years as more resources became available, and they also improved the partnership with MetLife execs and staff. A good indication was the unique success New Jersey had with the Taylor Swift New Era concert series, where MetLife Stadium was the only venue in the country where traffic actually increased by 27% on average over the course of the three nights. I believe this resulted from a combination of good service by NJ Transit, which ran extra trains and buses around the stadium, close coordination with NJDOT and the Turnpike folks on messaging and good external public messaging. 

Outside of travel to and from the stadium, how is this event anticipated to impact commuter traffic this summer on our roadways? How about train travel? 

Corbett: Unlike Paris, which hosted the Olympics in their “off season,” the World Cup is being held at the same time as the U.S. 250th Independence Day festivities. This is why both New Jersey and New York officials are stressing that during the four key weekday games — June 16, June 22, June 25 and June 30 — residents who can work from home should do so, and, if not, they should avoid travel at peak times related to the games. While it will unfortunately inconvenience commuters, to meet the security and volume of passengers going to and from the venue, there will be a few windows where regular scheduled service on the Northeast Corridor (NEC) to and from New York will be suspended. NJT has a full information campaign on alternatives for regular commuters, including either taking the PATH to Hoboken or utilizing their bus services from the PABT. In general, the message to the public is similar to a major snowstorm: If you don't need to go to work, please stay at home.

Since MetLife and our transit hubs are already established, does New Jersey avoid problems with the World Cup that other host cities have faced? 

Guarino: New Jersey does not face the problems of massive debt from building a new facility or underused infrastructure left behind after the games. MetLife Stadium was completed in 2010 and was built with funds from the New York Giants and New York Jets. In fact, they are co-owners of MetLife Stadium. When the stadium was built, the State of New Jersey placed a train stop there that did not exist when Giants Stadium was in the same location. The idea behind the train stop was to make it easier for fans to travel to stadium events, such as concerts and football games, rather than add to traffic congestion on Route 3 that runs by the venue. In essence, New Jersey will not incur any debt in hosting World Cup games – only the cost of placing real grass on the playing field. But with the steep price of the tickets, the owners of MetLife Stadium will get back its expenditures in the first.

With hotel and other prices surging, does a mega-event like this hurt local residents' purchasing power in the short term? Or is there a positive effect for businesses or communities that are hosting watch parties?

Guarino: The World Cup will cause “micro-inflation” in the region because this will incentivize merchants to raise prices to make a quick profit. Due to the abnormally high prices that soccer fans will be charged for hotel accommodations, renting a house and dining in restaurants, local residents will feel significant financial pain until the games are over. But a mega-event, such as the World Cup, will be a financial and economic boon to local businesses and communities hosting watch parties, as fans will be encouraged to join together to watch the games and have drinks and food while doing so.