The “Sommermärchen,” or “Summer Fairy Tale,” of the 2006 World Cup in Germany showcased a modern, unified nation welcoming to fans globally.
A key to its success was the “KombiTicket,” offering free local public transportation on match days.
Subsequent World Cup hosts, including Russia in 2018 with free long-distance trains and Qatar in 2022 with complimentary metro access, continued this tradition, making stadium-hopping an integral part of the tournament experience.
Now, the United States is set to host, and the narrative has taken a starkly different turn. Fans, already grappling with exorbitant ticket prices, expensive flights, and high hotel costs, are discovering that reaching some stadiums by rail will incur another substantial expense.
Round-trip train fares are set at $98 round-trip train fares in New Jersey and $80 in Massachusetts — trips that normally cost NFL fans $12.90 and $20, respectively.
Officials contend these charges are not an attempt to exploit fans but rather to cover the costs of enhanced security and expanded train services without burdening taxpayers.
However, many fans view it as yet another financial strain imposed by tournament organizers on visitors already spending vast sums to attend matches in the sprawling, car-centric US, where public transit has often been an afterthought.
Unlike previous hosts, some state and local officials are reluctant to absorb these costs, arguing they should be borne by Fifa, the international soccer body poised to generate billions from the event.
The search for an affordable solution has even led overseas.
“Planning for this World Cup has been a nightmare from start to finish,” remarked Rory Phillips-Hunter, a 37-year-old hospitality worker from northern England, originally from Scotland. “I think it’s the most inaccessible one there’s ever been.”
Perplexed by the lack of reasonably priced options to travel the 25 miles (40 kilometers) from Providence, Rhode Island, to Foxborough, Massachusetts, where Scotland’s initial two matches will be held, Phillips-Hunter and fellow Tartan Army members took matters into their own hands.
At about $50 per person, the Scots have booked about 20 school buses to take nearly 1,000 members of the plaid-clad fan group to each match. They’re even getting a police escort, all for just over half the cost of the $95 bus fare that local officials are offering — a combined savings of more than $85,000.
Above all, Phillips-Hunter is frustrated that a group of Scots from across the ocean managed to organize transportation far more cheaply than what local authorities proposed. “When I look at that difference in cost, that’s just profits you’re taking from us,” he stated.
The approach to transportation varies significantly among host cities. Atlanta, Houston, and Seattle boast stadiums directly connected to their rail systems, where regular fares will apply.
Miami-Dade County officials recently announced free shuttles to Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, about 15 miles (24 kilometers) from downtown. Philadelphia, supported by Fifa sponsor Airbnb, will offer free rides back from the stadium. Kansas City, Missouri, is providing $15 shuttles.
The elevated transit costs for matches at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey and Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts are partly due to their suburban locations, where fans typically drive to NFL games.
However, World Cup security perimeters, broadcast requirements, and VIP areas will severely limit parking, compelling many more fans to rely on public transit.
David Gogishvili, a senior researcher at Switzerland’s University of Lausanne who studies major sports events, noted that it is standard practice for organizers like Fifa to offload much of the cost onto host countries. The distinction this time, he explained, is that the US has “stronger and more independent” state and local officials less inclined to absorb the costs and “bow to the wills of Fifa.”
“These costs should be borne by the organization that is earning money out of these events, which is Fifa. It should not always be the host cities that take on all the expenses,” Gogishvili asserted, highlighting the soccer body’s projected $13 billion revenue from 2023-26. New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat, has urged Fifa to cover the transportation expenses for matches.
Fifa, however, has pushed back, arguing that no other global event has been asked to absorb such costs and that its initial agreements with host cities stipulated free transportation for fans to all matches. These agreements were later amended to permit cities to provide transit “at cost.”
Gogishvili suggested that the accessibility of transit at recent World Cups stemmed from host nations like Russia and Qatar viewing the tournament as a “public relations exercise,” subsidizing transport accordingly.
Officials’ apprehension over transit costs coincides with growing concerns that the promised World Cup economic boom may not materialize, with hotel room bookings falling short of expectations in most of the 11 US host cities.
A 2022 study co-authored by Gogishvili revealed that nearly every World Cup from 1966 through 2018 operated at a financial deficit.
Yonah Freemark, a researcher specializing in transit issues at the Washington-based Urban Institute think tank, commented that World Cup fans from Europe and Asia will encounter less-advanced but costlier transit systems than they are accustomed to.
Referring to the transit pricing for matches in New Jersey and Massachusetts, Freemark stated that officials “are trying to get away with murder.” He added that wait times and transit access are likely to fall significantly short of what many international visitors expect.
Ynara Correa da Costa, a Brazilian systems analyst living near Sao Paulo, will be attending her seventh World Cup. Like many, she was astonished when officials initially proposed charging as much as $150 for train fares from New York City to MetLife Stadium, where Brazil plays its opener against Morocco. The widespread shock and led New Jersey officials to lower the price to $98 after securing additional funding.
Yet, even the lowered price for a short train ride “is just not acceptable,” Costa said.
Costa was encouraged when the local host committee announced it had secured more buses to the stadium and slashed the price from $80 to $20.
However, there are only enough bus seats for 18,000 fans to reach the stadium, which has a capacity of about 82,500.
While this seems more manageable to Costa, she had previously wondered if she and other budget-conscious fans might have to walk to MetLife Stadium, which is not feasible.
“We’ll go to the match, that I know,” Costa affirmed. “But how? Let’s see.”
