New York is the heart of the world and is a fitting host for the 2026 World Cup final

NEW YORK — There's always going to be competition for absolutely anything in the New York City area, but the World Cup final between Spain and Argentina this Sunday is dominating the metropolis. Fans of Spain and Argentina, hordes of celebrities, and neutrals who just love the game, have flocked to New York City for the final at MetLife Stadium. Everywhere you turn billboards have Lionel Messi, Lamine Yamal, Christian Pulisic and other stars plastered all over them. World Cup fever is omnipresent in the city that never sleeps. Argentina fans marveled at the madness of it all: "It is just crazy!" Having the World Cup final here just makes sense. It had to be New York. There is no doubting its iconic status as the best-known city on earth. New York City a fitting host for the 2026 World Cup final This final is symbolic. It represents the showpiece event for the world’s game, and no city represents the world like New York City. "The United States are known as being the melting pot of the world, and New York City is the hub of it all," Kevin Alwell, who is originally from New Jersey and is going to the final on Sunday, said. "So just to see all the different cultures and countries being in the city and kind of rally together around the tournament, the last month has been unreal. So I'm looking forward to seeing the final." Nick Barron, who works at Legends Bar in the heart of midtown and has been a part of the soccer community in this region for almost two decades, believes it just make sense for New York to have this moment. "Yeah, big stadium, big pull for football here, numerous nationalities live in this town, so it's a massive melting pot. Everywhere from South America to all parts of Africa, the Far East, all over Europe, we have everybody in this city. It's a massive deal for New York. especially with some of the other stadiums you've got around the country," Barron said. EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - JULY 15: The FIFA World Cup Trophy is displayed at New York/New Jersey Stadium ahead of the FIFA World Cup Final on July 15, 2026 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Jordan Bank - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images) FIFA via Getty Images There’s been plenty of talk about MetLife Stadium not being up to the incredible level of 2026 World Cup stadiums in Los Angeles, Dallas and Atlanta, or having the history of the Azteca in Mexico City, but the actual stadium is secondary. New York is still the city everyone dreams of seeing. After so long New York still represents the American dream. It has the largest economy of any metropolitan area in the world, New York is the largest city in the USA and is a truly global hub. It's not just the stadium in New Jersey or Manhattan which will benefit from what everyone is calling a 'fairytale final' with Messi involved in chasing history. 50,000 fans are expected at Central Park for a Fan Fest. Over 25,000 Argentina fans are expected to pack Times Square on Saturday, the day before the final. Numerous huge events have been held across the city, and Brooklyn, and New Jersey. "It's huge," Facundo Quiroga, an Argentina and San Lorenzo fan who has lived in New York for 26 years, explained. "I mean, for us, for the city, this is a dream coming true. We are Argentinians and we're in the final. Second time in a row. It's crazy. We are so happy. We are playing against a very tough team, that's the reality, anything that happens will happen, but this guy Messi made it twice in a row. It's unbelievable. I am very proud to be part of this city. Sunday is going to be huge." Argentina fans celebrate their team’s victory in the World Cup quarterfinal football match against Switzerland after watching on giant screens at the NYNJ World Cup 26 Fan Village at Rockefeller Center in New York on July 11, 2026. (Photo by kena betancur / AFP via Getty Images) AFP via Getty Images The grand finale to a chaotic, exhausting, dramatic and larger-than-ever-before World Cup simply had to be here in this area. New York is home for everyone. "Every nationality, every country has a spot where they feel like they have their little bit of home there," Trace Arena said. He and his girlfriend found the main Scottish pub in New York and went there to watch one of their games and spent eight hours having the time of their lives as New Yorkers have totally embraced this World Cup. There are so many stories like that. Flight crews at JFK welcomed fans arriving to the city by orchestrating cheers for Argentina, Spain, England and France making the final four instead of announcing what the local time was. Rockefeller Center has been turned into a World Cup utopia by Telemundo with watch parties at the Top of the Rock and events galore. The Empire State Building has been decked out and celebrating the tournament throughout. Fans from seemingly every nation who competed at this World Cup gather in Times Square to celebrate day and night as horns honk, cheers go up and smiles grow wider. 24 June 2026, USA, New York City: Soccer, World Cup, national team, ahead of the final group stage match against Ecuador: German fans celebrate in Times Square. Photo: Jan Woitas/dpa (Photo by Jan Woitas/picture alliance via Getty Images) dpa/picture alliance via Getty Images Barron shared the thing he has enjoyed most about this World Cup is seeing so many people have a wonderful time in New York City and across America. That common theme has run throughout this World Cup. No matter where you're from there are so many similarities that bring us together and deep down, despite all the chaos, New Yorkers are just normal people. Local hotel worker Erin shared her delight about the World Cup coming to New York too: "I've just loved everyone coming together here in New York and having fun and celebrating and learning about their cultures. It has really shown what New York is all about and how international it is. I'm really going to miss all of these soccer fans once the tournament is over." "It's New York. As a New Yorker I cannot wish nothing else than to play the final here, home," Quiroga said. "So hopefully everything is going to be fine. They're going to throw a huge party tomorrow and the day after, and hopefully the cup is coming back to Buenos Aires!" It is finally New York’s time The fact that Los Angeles hosted the men’s World Cup final in 1994, and the Azteca in Mexico has done so on two previous occasions, meant that when the 2026 World Cup bid was won by North America this was New York’s turn for the grand finale. And the stadium and New York itself has rich soccer history too. New York is New York, but the biggest game in the world needed to be played here. On the site of this current MetLife stadium where the final will be played on Sunday is where Pele and Franz Beckenbauer dazzled for the New York Cosmos in the 1970s as the first large wave of love for the world’s game in America flowed through New York. And New Yorkers are all-in on this World Cup. "To see the stadium packed and in the news and just being in Times Square earlier today and seeing in downtown within New York City, there's a buzz in the area," Alwell explained. "So it's going to be really, really awesome just to see how packed it's going to be and really just how this country has been backing the World Cup. I've been to Atlanta, Miami, Philadelphia, now this will be my sixth game. It has been great. I was out partying with the Scots in Miami. I was out with the English folks in Atlanta. It's been a really, really great World Cup." The gilded bronze sculpture of Prometheus and a 27-foot-tall replica of the World Cup trophy built by the LEGO group overlook fans watching the World Cup quarterfinal football match between Argentina and Switzerland at the NYNJ World Cup 26 Fan Village at Rockefeller Center in New York on July 11, 2026. (Photo by kena betancur / AFP via Getty Images) AFP via Getty Images If you speak to New Yorkers, they are proud to host the biggest event for the global game. They’re also used to being at the front of center of everything. "I mean, this is awesome," Alwell added. "We've been looking forward to this for the 8-10 years that we've been announced to host it. The fact that it's going to be right in the backyard, out in New Jersey, we're looking forward to it, especially to end up being the match that it is, right? Seeing Messi in what will likely be this last World Cup against Spain and the next generation Messi with Lamine Yamal. It's going to be a really, really great final. We're looking forward to it." What has having the World Cup, not just the final, been like for average New Yorkers? "For the people in New York, well, they came off the back of the Knicks winning the NBA finals, which was the same day that Scotland and Brazil both played, so it was a real mixture of people out. But I think for a lot of them it's been very eye-opening, seeing an international soccer crowd coming out," Barron explained. "We've had England play games, and then the England fans have just gone out into the street and just partied in the street. And it wasn't a final. Just a regular World Cup game. And I think that's been a bit eye-opening for some people. Overall, I think people in New York have enjoyed it. Local businesses have embraced it, obviously, with the influx. And then we've got one more weekend of it and it's the biggest one of all. It is the biggest party of all, the greatest show on earth and New York is probably the best place to put it." NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 12: Fans of Brazil gather in Times Square for a meetup a day ahead of the match between Brazil and Morocco on June 12, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Daniela Porcelli/Getty Images) Getty Images Everywhere you go in Manhattan you can't escape this World Cup. In the best possible way. "All of Times Square, all of Rockefeller Center, and then also the Hudson Yards area, everyone's wearing jerseys, you see the Messi jerseys up and down the streets, and then obviously you see all the scenes of everybody partying from in different countries. It's been really cool to watch," Alwell beamed. What will hosting this final, World Cup games, mean long-term for soccer in New York and New Jersey? And then there's of course the legacy of having the World Cup final, and other World Cup games, here in the New York New Jersey area. Already a hotbed for the game which has produced so many great U.S. players over the years, this World Cup euphoria has given the metro area a huge chance to build a meaningful legacy. "That's best part about this, right?" Alwell, a huge Major League Soccer and New York Red Bulls fan, said. "New York City FC is building a brand new stadium out in Queens and it's way more accessible than it ever has been to get over to Yankee Stadium. Then Sports Illustrated Stadium, home of the New York Red Bulls over in New Jersey, is one of the finest soccer stadiums in the United States as well. So I'm really hoping this is really opens the eyes and continues the growth of sport within the United States and being able to really galvanize Major League Soccer further too." "I just hope we keep the momentum going," Arena added. "That there are more kids growing up who decide that instead of playing one of the other sports, they decide they want to go into soccer because it's a legitimate path and because they feel like they have a real opportunity to be a professional athlete in the sport. And hopefully they fall in love with it and grow with it." NEW YORK CITY, UNITED STATES - JULY 3: Norway supporters gather in Times Square to cheer their national football team ahead of their FIFA World Cup Round of 16 match against Brazil on July 03, 2026 in New York, United States. Hundreds of fans sang chants, waved Norwegian flags, and took part in the traditional Viking-style rowing celebration, creating a lively atmosphere as they counted down to the highly anticipated fixture. (Photo by Selcuk Acar/Anadolu via Getty Images) Anadolu via Getty Images Has hosting World Cup games exceeded the lofty expectations before the tournament began? "It has exceeded. Absolutely. We see massive fan groups leave here, then we see clips on Instagram or whatever as they take over Times Square," Barron said. "People leave here, they take the red steps in Times Square, and then, honestly, it's a lot of the fans coming out to watch other games. The Norwegians have been in so many other games. Brazilian fans have been in for so many different games. They just love football. There's a lot of rivalry in the game. So the Brazilians will be out on Sunday to root against Argentina. It's what it's all about. It's been a wild tournament. It's been a lot of fun, though, definitely been a lot of fun." The eyes of the world will be on New York this weekend, watching it have all of that fun for the finale, while New York will stop (or as close as this place will ever get to that) to watch the final. "All the eyes will be on it. Everyone in the city, hopefully, will be watching it. We're hoping that all of that momentum has kind of build up to this," Arena said. "This is one of the greatest cities in the world. Everybody's enjoying, everybody's having fun and everything has been good. I don't hear nobody complaining and everybody's having fun and trying to respect each other," Quiroga smiled. New York and New Jersey has waited a long time to host the World Cup final and it truly deserves this moment.