The NY/NJ FIFA 2026 World Cup Host Committee will announce later today how it will use the area inside and around Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison to create a Fan Festival-type experience in Northern New Jersey during the 39-day event, two people with knowledge of the announcement told BINJE.
The event will be called the ‘Jersey Fan Hub.’
The Hub is expected to have food and entertainment. It is not necessarily an attempt to replace the since-cancelled extravaganza that was originally scheduled for Liberty State Park, but it will the official fan experience organized by the Host Committee.
There will be other gathering places for fans in New Jersey. (See Flag Cities event here; and two events at American Dream here and here.)
Since it will be at Sports Illustrated Stadium – right next to the Harrison PATH station – it also will be the most easily accessible to fans staying in New York.
Specific details will be announced later this morning, but this is what the sources shared with BINJE about the Fan Festival at Sports Illustrated Stadium:
- The fan festival will not be open every day; one source estimated there will be 15-20 dates, most of which will fall on the weekend;
- The fan festival will not be open with games are being played at MetLife Stadium;
It is unclear if the Fan Festival at Sports Illustrated Stadium will receive funding from the EDA – though funding will determine just how big the events can be.
It is not part of the Welcome World initiative by the Host Committee to help small businesses.
