JERSEY CITY—Goya Foods and the Meadowlands Chamber of Commerce announced March 11 that Jersey City and Newark will join three other North Jersey communities in staging FIFA World Cup fan festivals this June. Flag Cities 2026 replaces a centralized Liberty State Park celebration canceled by Governor Mikie Sherrill in February.

Jersey City will present its event along Christopher Columbus Drive on June 12 from 5 to 11 p.m. Newark will stage its celebration on June 24 from 4 to 9 p.m. at Mulberry Plaza. Secaucus, East Rutherford and Overpeck Park in Bergen County were also announced as locations. Each operates independently with municipal coordination.

Meadowlands Chamber President Jim Kirkos said the region made mistakes during the 2014 Super Bowl and would not repeat them. Spreading activities across five municipalities distributes economic benefits more widely than concentrating in one location.

Jersey City Mayor James Solomon endorsed the Jersey City site despite earlier support for the Liberty State Park plan. He said that the proposal would have ferried New York visitors directly to the park without engaging Jersey City neighborhoods. Downtown placement allows local businesses to capture foot traffic.

Newark Mayor Ras Baraka said the Newark location gives local businesses access to economic activity that they would miss without stadium tickets. LED screens, food trucks, beer gardens, live music, kids zones and cultural activations will fill programming. Goya serves as the presenting sponsor. Organizers said tickets will go on sale late March or early April, with entertainment announcements on April 15.

Pricing runs $10 for children and $20 for adults, with free admission at some locations. Bergen County Executive Jim Tedesco said residents unable to afford stadium tickets can still view matches through these free- and reduced-admission locations. Table to Table is the food security partner and NJ Transit will cross-promote transit access. Partnerships address congestion concerns that plagued earlier regional mega-events.

MetLife Stadium will hold eight World Cup matches, including the July 19 final. More than 100,000 visitors are expected per match day. East Rutherford will also stage a Flag Cities gathering. Match tickets are sold separately from festival admission.

New Jersey will see an estimated $2 billion economic impact from the tournament. Small businesses are preparing for increased demand across hospitality and retail sectors. Competing with Philadelphia and other host cities for visitor spending, the series attempts to distribute that impact beyond stadium-adjacent businesses.

Sources 

● NorthJersey.com (March 12, 2026)

● CBS News New York (March 11, 2026)

● ABC7 New York (March 12, 2026)

● ROI-NJ (March 12, 2026)

● News12 New Jersey (March 12, 2026)