Murphy: Club WC Snags Won’t Derail Biggest Event ‘in Human History’

NEWARK — The final matchup for the FIFA Club World Cup is now set, and the tournament, culminating Sunday at MetLife Stadium with global powers Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea, serves as a critical forerunner to next year’s FIFA men’s World Cup, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said.

Murphy, speaking Thursday at the Prudential Center at a soccer summit developed by GK Digital Ventures and Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, said the tournament has provided key learnings for the World Cup, which he expects to be the largest single event in sports history. MetLife Stadium will also host the final for the World Cup, with a joint New York/New Jersey host committee prevailing last year in a spirited competition for the event.

As one FIFA event ends and preparation heightens for the next one, Murphy said he has been keenly interested in evaluating progress on safety and security, transportation, and fan experience.

“We actively sought out a major role in the Club World Cup this year, to make sure we could take whatever we’re doing around the track, so to speak,” Murphy said. “It was important to make sure all these things worked not only for this Cup, but that could test it out for next year. So we are incredibly enthusiastic for both years.”

The governor’s optimism exists even as the Club World Cup has been beset with a variety of operational issues, including near-empty stadiums in some instances, continued weak ticket demand as the tournament has continued, and complaints over field conditions. A sellout, however, is expected for Sunday’s final, and ticket resale prices begin at more than $300 per seat on multiple markets. 

New Jersey’s preparation for both FIFA events has included the development of an operations command center in Kearny, not far from MetLife Stadium, a heightened coordination with various levels of law enforcement and government. Additionally, state officials have been heavily involved in developing numerous fan festivals around New Jersey, including a primary one planned for Liberty State Park in Jersey City. 

Great Expectations

Murphy, meanwhile, predicted that the tournament final next year, to be played at MetLife Stadium, will be the “most-watched event in human history.” That’s likely to be true, given the global scale of the event and appeal of soccer, and the expanded, 48-team World Cup field that will begin next year. Additionally, major media measurement agencies such as Nielsen have developed better tools in recent months to more accurately track viewership. 

Though economic impact figures around sports have often been deemed as specious or overly inflated by government entities, Murphy said next year’s World Cup will generate “single-digit billions of dollars” for New Jersey as MetLife Stadium will host eight matches overall. 

“There is nowhere on the planet, in my humble opinion, that is more prepared for next year than we are,” Murphy said. 

U.S. President Donald Trump, who has made attending high-profile sporting events a fixture of his second term, will be at Sunday’s final of the Club World Cup. Trump has a quickly growing relationship with FIFA and its president, Gianni Infantino, with that tie furthered by the organization’s announcement earlier this week that it is opening an office at Trump Tower in New York.