N.Y. and New Jersey “did something rare” in their feat of landing the 2026 FIFA World Cup Final at MetLife Stadium: They “put political wrangling aside and worked together,” according to Brian Lewis of the N.Y. POST. The NYNJ World Cup Host Committee “rode that cooperation to victory.” While that relationship “started the moment MetLife was picked as host city,” the “real groundwork began in earnest this summer.” Unlike the united bid back in 2018 that brought the World Cup to the U.S., Mexico and Canada, there was “no bid book.” This was done “largely verbally and personally,” with FIFA President Gianni Infantino and his team. Many times, in the past when there had to be collaborations there would be “tensions between the politics” of N.Y. and N.J, however, there was “no tension.” Meadowlands Regional Chamber of Commerce President James Kirkos said, “If the host committee needed the governor to attend a dinner because [Infantino] was going to be at the thing, the governor changed his schedule and was at the dinner.” Sources said that it took “entertainment, accommodations, convenient time zones, diversity and a massive law enforcement apparatus.” Kirkos said, “It wasn’t just the stadium, because let’s face it AT&T Stadium is a spectacular facility. It’s newer than MetLife Stadium, so stadium-to-stadium they may have had an edge.” He added, “But you put all those things together that were important to FIFA -- the level of accommodations, the proximity … and on the scorecard we came out a bunch of points ahead” (N.Y. POST, 2/7).
REPUTATION PRECEDING: FC Dallas owner and Dallas FIFA World Cup '26 Chair Dan Hunt said that it is “clear” why FIFA chose MetLife Stadium for the final over AT&T Stadium in Arlington. He said, “New York, you know, is the global financial capital of the world. There’s no other reason.” In Dallas, Nudelstejer, Jeffers Jr., and Mejia-Hilario wrote “signs appeared to point to New York’s international reputation as the driving force behind MetLife being awarded the final,” though committee members have fielded questions about whether “transportation to Arlington or the state’s conservative politics played a role.” Hunt said transportation “wasn’t remotely an issue.” Austin-based lobbyist and Republican political consultant Bill Miller said that there is “no indication” that politics “wielded any influence in FIFA’s decision” (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 2/6).
