New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced Thursday that 1,000 tickets priced at $50 will be made available to city residents for this summer's World Cup matches at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. The tickets cover seven of eight games, excluding the high-demand final on July 19.

Mamdani emphasized that the initiative aims to ensure working-class New Yorkers are not priced out of the tournament. The tickets are non-transferable and will be distributed via a lottery starting May 25, with recipients receiving them directly when boarding buses on game day.

The tickets come from the allocation of the New York and New Jersey joint host committee, not from FIFA. Mamdani had previously called on FIFA to set aside 15% of tickets at discounted prices, launching a petition against FIFA's demand-based pricing.

While FIFA had earlier offered $60 tickets for every game following backlash, those went to national federations for distribution to loyal fans. The $50 tickets are a local initiative to make the event more accessible.

Source: www.aljazeera.com