Zohran Mamdani, the new elected mayor of New York City, opposed the pricing policies for next summer World Cup, which will be held in the United States, Mexico and Canada, with the final scheduled for the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, an hour away from New York City.
In a video posted on September 10, Mamdani revealed himself as a "lifelong footba- sorry, soccer fan" and wondered if any working class New Yorkers were actually going to be able to attend one of the matches. He opposed the dynamic pricing system imposed by FIFA for the first time for the 2026 World Cup, which means that prices fluctuate depending on the demand, making it already the most expensive World Cup ever.
<social>https://www.instagram.com/reel/DOZuwlzDrDG/</social>
He also opposed to the resale of tickets on secondary platforms controlled by FIFA, with no price cap, which means that somebody could buy a ticket for $60 and resale it for $6,000.
As a response, he proposed that FIFA would enforce a resale price cap, as well as dedicating a 15% ticket quota for local residents at a discount price, launching a petition drive. None of this ideas were taken by FIFA, whose president Gianni Infantino is very close with president Donald Trump
How Mamdani is using football, or soccer, to gain political influence
Mamdani, born in Uganda in 1991 (the first Muslim New York mayor and youngest since 1892) is a self-confessed Arsenal supporter (he told The Athletic that he had a magnet with the Invincibles, the Arsenal squad that won 2003/04 Premier League without losing a game), and went to South Africa World Cup in 2010.
"I went to South Africa in 2010. I know what the World Cup represents, as it's the most popular tournament in the world, and also what it could be", he said, criticising the "continued commercialization of the sport". In our fight to make the most expensive city in the United States affordable, we don't limit ourselves to housing, childcare, and public transportation. We also encompass the moments that bring so much joy to New Yorkers, like next year's World Cup".
According to university professor Leander Schaerlaeckens in The Guardian (via RTVE), American soccer fans tend to be progressive, and "consciously or unconsciously, Mamdani has seen an opportunity to link the left with sports", adding that the traditional sports like American football, baseball or basketball have "exhausted their political influence".
"What sport, after all, better embodies the unbridled capitalism of our day and its parasitic relationship with its own fans than football? What sport strives harder to become inaccessible to its traditional audience? Where else will Mamdani find better similes for his everyday problems?"
It remains to be seen if Mamdani will have much power as New York City mayor against the "bromance" between Trump and Infantino (the US president even invited the FIFA president to the 2025 Gaza Peace Summit in Egypt last October). Trump has threatened to relocate World Cup matches, and FIFA had to remind him that it would FIFA's decision, not Trump's, with no power over those kind of decisions. But it may only take a phone call between Trump and Infantino...