The FIFA World Cup is now less than two months away. As media coverage ramps up, the entire world is quickly becoming acquainted with the peculiarities of the geography, politics, and economics of the greater New York City metropolitan complex.
Three weeks ago, I covered the glory of NJ Transit. This week, I’m going to discuss the stadium that will host the NYC area’s World Cup matches, which in many ways has come to epitomize the chaotic mess that has been the lead up to the tournament.
MetLife Stadium,
as it is officially named, is the home of the American football teams the New York Jets and the New York Giants. The fact that the stadium is not located in New York, either the city or the state, but in the neighboring state of New Jersey, has made it a bit of a meme among American football fans and induced much consternation among New Jerseyans. To make matters worse, because FIFA does not allow sponsored stadium names to outshine their own sponsors, has demanded that it be temporarily renamed, and have settled on the New York New Jersey Stadium. So New Jerseyans can at least take solace in the fact that they’re mentioned at all.
After the whole NJ Transit fiasco, groups of foreign fans have suggested giving the finger to trains or cars and just walking from Manhattan to the stadium. If you happen to be one of those people, please understand that this is just not a good idea. Do you know that pestilential wasteland filled with highways that Tony Soprano drives through in the opening credits of The Sopranos? That’s called the Meadowlands. That’s where the stadium is.
It’s just not possible. It’s like me thinking that I can walk from Dover to Calais because it’s not that far as the crow flies. Please do not try it. If you can afford a ticket to one of the matches, you can afford a train ticket or what I can only assume is an extortionate parking fee.
