2 weeks ago
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England fans are facing having to pay train fares of more than £100 to watch one of their World Cup group matches in the USA.
Anyone going to a game at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey from New York City's Penn Station will have to pay $150 (£111) for the 15-minute, nine-mile (14km) journey, US transport officials said.
That's nearly 12 times the usual $12.90 (£9.50) fare for the return trip from Manhattan to the venue in East Rutherford, which is home to both the NFL's New York Giants and New York Jets.
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With most fans unable or unwilling to shell out $225 (£166) for one of the limited number of parking spaces at the site, New Jersey officials expect around 40,000 fans will use mass transit for each match, including the final that's held at the same ground on 19 July.
England face Panama in their final group game on 27 June at the stadium, with Brazil, France and Germany also set to play there, possibly twice - should any of those sides reach the final.
The price hike came amid a row between state officials and FIFA over who should pay for fans to get to and from matches.
New Jersey Governor, Mikie Sherrill, said the uplift was necessary to ensure regular local commuters weren't stuck with a "tab for years to come" for hosting the first US World Cup since 1994.
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NJ Transit officials said it would cost $62m (£46m) to transport fans to the stadium and, with only $14m (£10m) offset by grants, NJ Transit President and CEO Kris Kolluri denied it was "price-gouging", telling reporters on Friday they were "literally trying to recoup our costs".
The MetLife Stadium isn't the only venue where transport costs have been raised, as buses from various parts of Boston to the Gillette Stadium for tournament matches will cost $95 (£70), officials said this week.
Thousands of fans have already bought $80 (£59) round-trip train tickets for the 30-mile (48km) journey from the city to the arena in Foxborough, which normally cost $20 (£15) for New England Patriots games in the NFL.
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Other World Cup host cities, including Los Angeles and Philadelphia, have said they'll be keeping transport fares unchanged, pointing to the $100m (£74m) or so provided in federal transport grants to host cities for additional buses and trains.
Ms Sherrill said on X on Wednesday that FIFA "should pay for the rides", to which world football's governing body replied that host cities agreed to offer free transportation for fans to all matches in deals signed in 2018.
The huge increase in the fare to MetLife also drew an objection from New York Governor Kathy Hochul, who said the neighbouring state's charge "sounds awfully high to me".
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