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If you thought scoring FIFA World Cup 2026 tickets was expensive, wait until you try to get there.
A new report from The Athletic suggests that NJ Transit could charge more than $100 for a round-trip train ride between Penn Station and MetLife Stadium during this summer’s matches, an eye-watering jump from the usual $12.90 event-day fare. That’s roughly a 675% increase for an 18-mile trip.
Before you start budgeting, officials say nothing is set in stone yet. NJ Transit has pushed back on the reported pricing, calling it “unconfirmed speculation” and noting that final fares haven’t been announced. Still, the agency has confirmed one thing: running service for the eight matches will cost about $48 million—and someone’s going to have to pay for it.
State leaders have made it clear that they don’t want regular commuters to foot the bill, so visiting fans are the most likely target. But the potential price hike has already sparked backlash.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul called the reported fare “awfully high” in a post on X, while Senator Chuck Schumer went further, telling The Athletic that the situation was a “shakedown” and pointed the finger at FIFA’s hosting agreements, which place hefty security and infrastructure costs on local governments while the organization keeps most of the revenue.
And those costs aren’t small. Security requirements for World Cup matches are expected to be unlike anything the region has handled before, with transit operations facing major disruptions. Plans could include limiting access to NJ Transit areas of Penn Station to ticketed fans only for hours before each match, plus timed entry windows tied to train tickets—meaning even if you’re willing to pay triple digits for a train ride, you may also need to plan your entire day around it.
Adding to the pressure, getting to MetLife Stadium isn’t exactly easy without transit. Parking will be extremely limited and nearby options like the American Dream mall are reportedly charging between $225 and $300. Ride shares and shuttle buses exist, but with tens of thousands of fans expected per match, neither is likely to be cheap or stress-free.
Globally, this all feels like a sharp departure. At past tournaments, including the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and Euro 2024 in Germany, match tickets often included free public transit on game days. Here, it might cost you more than $100 just to cross the Hudson.
Official pricing is expected in the coming weeks. Until then, just know that the real cost of attending the World Cup might start long before kickoff.