A round-trip rail ticket for FIFA World Cup ticket holders traveling from New York to New Jersey for matches could cost close to $150, more than 10 times the typical fare and higher than what has been previously reported, according to three people familiar with the plans.
The soaring price, for what amounts to a 15-minute ride across the Hudson River, has infuriated commuters and soccer fans and put the bistate committee in charge of the matches on the defensive, just weeks before the tournament is set to begin in June.
The Athletic, which is owned by The New York Times, reported earlier this week that round-trip tickets from Pennsylvania Station in New York City to World Cup matches being held in June and July in New Jersey — a roughly nine-mile trip — could cost more than $100, an enormous markup from the typical $12.90 fare.
NJ Transit, along with the New York-New Jersey hosting committee for the games, are expected to discuss pricing and other logistics at a news conference on Friday, and it is possible that the fare being discussed could still change.
But the governor of New Jersey, Mikie Sherrill, gave credence to the possibility of triple-digit rail tickets on Wednesday, arguing in a statement posted on social media that the state had been saddled with high costs by FIFA, the sports governing body running the soccer tournament, and that she would not pass the debt onto everyday commuters.
“We inherited an agreement where FIFA is providing $0 for transportation to the World Cup,” she said. “FIFA should pay for the rides. But if they don’t — I’m not going to let New Jersey get taken for one.”
Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York also responded negatively to the prospect of sky-high prices for train tickets, saying in a statement that “The World Cup should be as affordable and accessible as possible.”
Officials with FIFA and NJ Transit could not immediately be reached for comment.
The transit agency expects to carry 40,000 soccer enthusiasts to and from each of the eight matches being held at MetLife Stadium, which is being rebranded as the New York New Jersey Stadium for the World Cup. Most drivers will not be allowed to park on the premises, so many ticket holders are expected to arrive via train or bus.
NJ Transit said in an earlier statement that the overall cost to the agency for the matches being held at the stadium was approximately $48 million, largely because of extra security costs.
Without an increase in the ticket cost for people traveling to see the World Cup, that expense could diminish funds available for other mass transit priorities or eventually be passed along to everyday NJ Transit riders or taxpayers.
“I’m not putting this on the backs of New Jerseyans,” Ms. Sherrill said on Wednesday during a call-in radio show. She said she was prepared to authorize a hefty fare increase for World Cup ticket holders unless FIFA agreed to “defray” the expense.
More than a million visitors are expected to travel to the New York-New Jersey region during the tournament. The influx is expected to generate $3.3 billion in economic activity, according to the host committee.
Tickets to the World Cup matches being held in the area are selling for thousands of dollars.
Tom Haas, of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, the union whose members drive NJ Transit trains, said in a statement that neither riders nor New Jersey taxpayers should be expected to shoulder the rail agency’s added expenses.
“It’s unfair to expect the riders and the people providing transportation to and from the games to bear the costs of that service,” he said.
The backlash comes after reports that NJ Transit will bar most riders from New York’s Penn Station for four hours before the start of each of the matches. During the lockout periods, one of which will coincide with an evening weekday rush hour, only passengers with tickets to that day’s match will be allowed to enter NJ Transit’s sections of Penn Station.
NJ Transit riders have already experienced a tumultuous period that left them frustrated with service. In 2024, the transit network, which also operates a bus network, instituted a systemwide fare increase of 15 percent, followed by a 3 percent jump in 2025, to help pay for long-deferred upgrades.
And last year, riders endured a three-day strike on NJ Transit trains, the first in more than 40 years, after a contract dispute between the former governor, Phil Murphy, and the union representing engineers.
Kris Kolluri, who became president and chief executive of NJ Transit in early 2025, has emphasized the need to shore up the system’s aging infrastructure and trains. But modernizing the system will take time and patience.
The agency recently opened a new bridge to improve one of the worst train-traffic bottlenecks in the region. The construction required a month of headaches and service disruptions for hundreds of thousands of riders who work in Manhattan.
Kevin Corbett, a senior fellow of transportation studies at Rutgers University and the former head of NJ Transit, said he was hopeful that the World Cup matches would be a boon for New Jersey, and that costly train tickets and other hassles would pay off if the games are a success.
“I don’t think anyone’s going to remember how expensive the ticket was, if everything goes well,” he said.
Stefanos Chen is a Times reporter covering New York City’s transit system.
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