FIFA WORLD CUP 2026 · NY/NJ

How Long Islanders Get to the World Cup

All 8 New York/New Jersey matches are at MetLife Stadium — branded New York New Jersey Stadium for the tournament — in East Rutherford, NJ. It's across the Hudson, not in the city. Here's every route from Long Island, the dates that will wreck the commute, and what to do about it.

8 matches at MetLife Final: Sun, July 19 Venue: East Rutherford, NJ 1.2M+ fans expected in the region

The 8 NY/NJ matches — and how each hits the commute

Every match below is at MetLife Stadium (NYNJ Stadium), East Rutherford, NJ. The risk column is the LIT Data Desk's read on Long Island commuter overlap — not match importance.

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Round	LIRR commute risk
Sat, Jun 13	6:00 PM	Brazil vs. Morocco	Group C	Played
Tue, Jun 16	3:00 PM	France vs. Senegal	Group I	High
Mon, Jun 22	8:00 PM	Norway vs. Senegal	Group I	High
Thu, Jun 25	4:00 PM	Ecuador vs. Germany	Group E	Very High
Sat, Jun 27	5:00 PM	Panama vs. England	Group L	Moderate
Tue, Jun 30	5:00 PM	Knockout — teams TBD	Round of 32	Very High
Sun, Jul 5	4:00 PM	Knockout — teams TBD	Round of 16	Moderate
Sun, Jul 19	3:00 PM	World Cup Final	FINAL	Extreme

Sat, Jun 13 — Brazil vs. Morocco: Finished 1–1. Paired with the Knicks title celebration, it produced the June 13 Midtown gridlock and Times Square bus fire.
Thu, Jun 25 — Ecuador vs. Germany: Red-letter date. Pre-match window starts around noon; the post-match surge collides head-on with the evening commute.
Tue, Jun 30 — Knockout — teams TBD: The other red-letter date. Knockout stakes plus a direct evening-peak overlap.
Sun, Jul 19 — World Cup Final: The most-watched sporting event on earth. Not a normal Sunday at any point in the day.

Knockout matchups (June 30, July 5, July 19) depend on group results. For the full 104-match, 16-venue tournament schedule and tickets, see FIFA.com.

Your routes from Long Island

RECOMMENDED

1 · Rail the whole way (LIRR → Penn → Secaucus → Meadowlands)

LIRR → Penn Station. Your normal branch into Manhattan. If your destination or transfer favors the East Side, Grand Central Madison is a pressure-relief valve — but the World Cup pipeline runs out of Penn.
NJ Transit → Secaucus Junction. Northeast Corridor / North Jersey Coast Line trains from NY Penn reach Secaucus in minutes. Matchday catch: during the ~4-hour pre-match window this leg is reserved for FIFA ticket holders, checked before boarding.
Meadowlands Rail Line → MetLife. At Secaucus, transfer to the dedicated shuttle line that runs straight to the MetLife Stadium station on event days. This is the slowest, most crowded link — plan for it.

Why it wins: it's the spine the official Regional Stadium Mobility Plan is built around (NJ Transit rail is planned to carry ~40,000 of each match's spectators). No tunnel traffic, no parking lottery.

2 · Bus via Port Authority (LIRR → Penn → PABT → Meadowlands shuttle)

Take the LIRR to Penn, walk or hop the subway up to the Port Authority Bus Terminal (42nd & 8th), and use the official NY/NJ stadium shuttle or the Meadowlands express coach service to MetLife. The mobility plan sizes official stadium shuttles at roughly 10,000 riders per match. Good fallback if the Secaucus rail transfer is jammed — but PABT itself gets crowded on big event days.

3 · Drive (only if you must)

From Long Island: LIE (I-495) west → cross to New Jersey via the Lincoln Tunnel (Route 495) or the GWB / I-95 → MetLife is off NJ Route 3 and the NJ Turnpike, Exit 16W. Expect heavy traffic on Route 3, Route 495, the Lincoln Tunnel, and the Turnpike near match windows. Parking is prepaid, limited, and expected to be tightly restricted for World Cup matches — confirm a permit before you rely on driving, and assume the post-match lot exit is its own traffic jam.

4 · Just here for the atmosphere? Stay in NYC.

If you don't have a match ticket, you don't need New Jersey at all. New York City has announced FIFA fan-festival and watch-party activity across the five boroughs and Midtown — including Rockefeller Center — for big-screen viewing and tournament atmosphere. For most Long Islanders that's a simple LIRR ride to Penn or Grand Central and a short hop, with none of the cross-Hudson friction. Confirm official locations and hours before you go.

Matchday playbook for Long Island riders

Leave on the early side. The pre-match pipeline at Penn peaks; getting ahead of the ~4-hour window beats sitting in a ticket-validation queue.

Budget a "street-to-platform" buffer. On a managed-event day, "I reached Penn" and "I reached my train" are different milestones — sometimes 15–20 minutes apart.

Check LIRR status + TrainTime before you leave the house, not on the platform. Assume official alerts lag what riders already see.

Treat the Secaucus transfer as the bottleneck. It's the lowest-capacity link in the chain; everything backs up there first.

Don't drive into Midtown to dodge a rail problem. The plan explicitly expects heavy traffic on the tunnels, Route 3, and the Turnpike near matches.

Plan the return, not just the arrival. Post-match dispersal is a single crowd leaving through one gate in one hour. Pace it.

Frequently asked questions

How do you get to MetLife Stadium from Long Island for the World Cup?

The cleanest route is rail: take the LIRR to Penn Station, then NJ Transit to Secaucus Junction, then transfer to the Meadowlands Rail Line, which runs directly to the MetLife Stadium station on event days. Budget extra time on World Cup matchdays — NJ Transit's plan turns the NY Penn–to–Secaucus leg into a ticket-controlled pipeline for FIFA ticket holders during the roughly four-hour pre-match window.

Is MetLife Stadium in New York City?

No. MetLife Stadium — branded "New York New Jersey Stadium" for the tournament — is in East Rutherford, New Jersey, in the Meadowlands across the Hudson River. It is the primary venue serving the NYC metro area and hosts 8 matches including the July 19 Final, but every NY/NJ World Cup match is physically in New Jersey.

Can you drive to MetLife Stadium from Long Island for a match?

You can, but it is the option the official mobility plan actively steers people away from on matchdays. From Long Island you would take the LIE west, cross into New Jersey via the Lincoln Tunnel (Route 495) or the GWB/I-95, then reach MetLife off NJ Route 3 / NJ Turnpike Exit 16W. On-site parking is prepaid and limited and is expected to be heavily restricted around World Cup matches. Rail is faster and more predictable.

Which World Cup matchdays will be worst for the LIRR commute?

Thursday, June 25 (Ecuador–Germany) and Tuesday, June 30 (Round of 32) are the two to circle in red: both combine weekday travel with kickoff timing that drops a stadium-sized crowd into the evening commute through the Penn Station district. The July 19 Final is an all-day regional event. Separately, the Knicks ticker-tape parade on Thursday, June 18 puts a championship crowd in Lower Manhattan between matchdays.

What if I just want to watch — are there fan zones near Long Island?

Yes. New York City has announced FIFA fan-festival and watch-party activity across the five boroughs and Midtown (including Rockefeller Center), so Long Islanders who only want the atmosphere can stop in Manhattan or Queens instead of crossing to New Jersey. Confirm the official locations and hours before you travel, as the lineup and capacity change through the tournament.

When should I leave Long Island to make kickoff?

Treat the trip as three legs (LIRR to Penn, NJ Transit to Secaucus, Meadowlands shuttle to MetLife) plus a security/entry buffer, and add the matchday crowd tax on top. On a normal day the rail trip is roughly 90 minutes door-to-turnstile; on a World Cup matchday, plan to arrive at Penn well before the four-hour pre-match window peaks and assume the Secaucus transfer is the slowest link.

Travel routing reflects the published NYNJ Host Committee schedule and the NJ Transit / NYNJ Regional Stadium Mobility Plan as of June 14, 2026. Service patterns, fan-zone locations, and matchday restrictions change — always confirm with NJ Transit, the MTA/LIRR, and FIFA on the day you travel. Long Island Traffic is an independent transportation-information site and is not affiliated with FIFA, the MTA, or NJ Transit.