The Governor’s office released preliminary figures showing sizable statewide impacts from the 2026 FIFA World Cup, including billions in economic activity, hundreds of millions in tax revenue and tens of thousands attending state-led watch parties across New York.
Key figures and findings
According to the statement from Governor Kathy Hochul’s office, Tourism Economics analysis of the first five Group Matches held at MetLife Stadium shows $1.2 billion in direct visitor spending and a total economic impact of $2.1 billion. The analysis covers the first five matches hosted in June and does not include the final three MetLife Stadium games.
The state also reported $228 million in state and local tax revenue generated in June and said more than one million fans attended official New York–New Jersey fan events between the two states. The release notes that eight consecutive sellout games at New York New Jersey Stadium welcomed more than 560,000 fans.
Transportation, hotels and events
New York supported an Official NYNJ Stadium Shuttle to reduce the round-trip fare from $80 to $20; nearly 120,000 shuttle tickets were sold during the tournament. The state noted that shuttle performance helped fans enter the stadium before kickoff at a 97 percent rate on average, and reported Midtown travel times were up to 23 percent faster than historical averages on match days.
Hotels in the New York City metropolitan area posted higher room revenues compared with the same period last year (June 8–July 4): New York City hotels generated about $1.07 billion in room revenue (up 20.6%), Mid Hudson hotels about $86 million (up 18.3%), and Long Island hotels about $117 million (up 24%).
Community events and legacy funding
The state highlighted a $500,000 New York State Community World Cup Grant Program that funded 13 projects across seven Upstate regions to host local viewing events and regional activations. State-led flagship watch parties included:
- Stony Brook University (Long Island) – roughly 6,000 attendees throughout the day, about 5,000 for the evening USA vs. Paraguay watch party.
- UBS Arena watch party – more than 13,000 attendees across two matches.
- Kensico Dam Plaza (Westchester) – about 5,500 attendees.
- Central Park final watch party – more than 30,000 attendees; the event was supported by a $9.5 million Empire State Development investment and $3.5 million from New York City.
Looking ahead, the enacted FY27 budget includes a $5 million NY Kicks legacy fund to build soccer infrastructure in disadvantaged communities across the state, plus an additional $1 million for programming, equipment and operating costs for those sites.
Context and attribution
The figures and quotes above come from a press release issued by Governor Kathy Hochul’s office. The release describes the numbers as preliminary and notes a final statewide economic report, including operational spending and the full tournament period, will be provided when available.
