The 2026 World Cup is the best-attended in history, according to FIFA, and New Jersey is playing a major role in pushing tournament attendance to record levels.
The first six matches played at New York New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford have drawn crowds of more than 80,000 fans. Five of those matches had attendance of 80,663, while another brought in 80,545 fans, according to FIFA figures. Overall, only nine matches in the tournament have topped 80,000 fans so far, and six of them have happened in New Jersey.
FIFA says 5,049,079 fans have attended the first 77 matches of the FIFA World Cup 2026, with average attendance at 64,719 fans per match. The tournament broke the previous all-time cumulative attendance record before the end of the group stage on June 25. That record had stood since the 1994 World Cup, when nearly 3.6 million fans attended matches.
The biggest single-match crowds so far have been at Mexico City Stadium, where Uzbekistan v. Colombia, Mexico v. South Africa and Czechia v. Mexico each drew 80,824 fans. But New York New Jersey Stadium has been one of the most consistently packed stadiums of the World Cup so far.
We were at the England vs. Panama match on June 27, when 80,663 fans packed the stadium. And in a very New Jersey moment, the crowd broke into a Bon Jovi “Livin’ on a Prayer” sing-along, which has become a thing at every NYNJ Stadium match.
New York New Jersey Stadium will host two more matches: a Round of 16 match on July 5 and the World Cup Final on July 19. Today, the U.S. takes on Bosnia and Herzegovina at 8 pm EST in San Francisco. Where will you be watching?
Read More:
2026 FIFA World Cup in New Jersey: Fan Fests, Watch Parties and Family Events
These Restaurants and Bars Are Holding World Cup Watch Parties Throughout NJ
Free World Cup Watch Parties + Giveaways Are Now Open at NJ’s Fan Hub
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