The New York New Jersey host committee for the World Cup has made 770 tickets available for free for New Jerseyans — after New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani previously secured 1,000 $50 tickets for New Yorkers.The initiative has been made possible due to ticket donations by host committee partners Uber and Hackensack Meridian Health, who partnered with the host committee and Mikie Sherrill, the Governor of New Jersey.The tickets will be spread across seven games at MetLife Stadium during the World Cup — all matches at the venue except for the final.Five hundred tickets will go across youth soccer clubs, as well as to the families of New Jersey National Guard service members who are currently deployed overseas. Others eligible for the tickets will be the Hackensack hospital patients who are in the Make-A-Wish program, as well as Bergen County first responders who are aiding World Cup operations.Then two hundreds tickets will go via Hackensack, the official hometown hospital partner of the host committee to New Jersey front line nurses and healthcare members, as well as pediatric patients and children facing serious illness, as well as family members.Seventy free tickets will then be taken from the host committee’s allocation and these can be secured by those who are supporting small businesses locally through the “Welcome World Rewards program.” Fans will become eligible for these tickets by visiting local establishments during the tournament and attending local watch parties and community events during the competition.The 770 tickets will be made non-transferable so they are not vulnerable to resale or scalping.Last month, the New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani secured 1,000 tickets at a $50 price point to ballot off solely to New York residents after negotiations with FIFA President Gianni Infantino.Last month NYC mayor Zohran Mamdani secured 1,000 $50 tickets for New Yorkers (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)The $50 seats were the cheapest available for fans to purchase through a primary ticket market at the World Cup. The winners of the lottery also received free round-trip bus travel to attend the game. It will cost $98 to travel by rail with NJ Transit to MetLife Stadium during the World Cup.The initiative needed to be signed off by FIFA as ordinarily it is not permitted to go ahead with lotteries, sweepstakes or prices which undercut the official FIFA pricing model.FIFA’s sign-off exasperated politicians in New Jersey, who were unhappy that the World Cup organizer had signed off a benefit solely for New Yorkers when MetLife Stadium is in New Jersey and the state has committed hundreds of millions towards funding the World Cup. A spokesperson for New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill said “FIFA not caring about costs for New Jersey residents isn’t new,” with Gov. Sherrill previously criticizing FIFA for not assisting NJ transit with the projected $48million costs of its operations for the World Cup.Then, the issue became even more local within the host county of Bergen County.Bergen County Executive James J. Tedesco III sent a letter to the NYNJ host committee CEO Alex Lasry demanding an affordable ticket access program for Bergen County residents.He wrote: “Our residents will experience the day-to-day impacts of hosting this tournament more directly than perhaps any other community in the region. Bergen County families will contend with increased traffic congestion, strained local roadways, heightened public safety demands, and the broader disruptions that naturally accompany an event of this magnitude. Our municipalities, first responders, transit personnel, and local communities will shoulder many of the responsibilities required to help make the World Cup successful.”A joint host-city partnership between New York and New Jersey was established to host World Cup games at MetLife Stadium as far back as the bid book for the joint bid by the United States, Canada and Mexico in 2018.MetLife Stadium in New Jersey was eventually awarded eight games, including the final, while it will also house four World Cup teams (Brazil, Senegal, Haiti and Morocco) at training bases during the tournament. The idea was to merge the power of New York’s global name and reputation with the infrastructure of New Jersey and it was decided that the name of the host committee would be New York New Jersey.This included signage on the stadium, with MetLife’s name replaced during the tournament as FIFA’s agreement with host cities decrees that venues must be free from all commercial sponsors other than FIFA’s own.The venue, therefore, became known as New York New Jersey Stadium for the duration of the tournament, including two large signs at the venue which make this clear.However, a request came from Governor Mikie Sherrill’s office to FIFA and the host committee that they wanted New Jersey’s role, investment and contribution to the World Cup to be better reflected, and her office wanted the name to be changed.The name change request was made a couple of months ago when FIFA requested some operational changes to matters at the venue and Gov. Sherrill’s office said they were prepared to comply, but asked for the name change in return.“I will always put New Jersey first, and I wanted to make sure the stadium hosting eight World Cup matches in our state did the same,” said Governor Sherrill.There has also been tension between New York and New Jersey over transportation to games, with $98 NJ Transit tickets on offer for the rail service to the stadium, while New York governor Kathy Hochul committed $6million to help bring down an $80 shuttle bus service to a $20 round trip, with yellow school buses drafted in to provide support.