MetLife Stadium

MetLife Stadium is located within the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey, approximately 5 miles (8 km) west of Midtown Manhattan, at 1 MetLife Stadium Drive. The venue was opened on April 10, 2010, several months ahead of its planned completion date, replacing the original Giants Stadium which had stood on the adjacent lot since 1976 and was demolished in the same year that MetLife was opened. The official capacity is listed at 82,500 seats, of which 10,005 are club seats and approximately 218 are luxury suites, which makes MetLife the largest NFL venue by total seating, the largest stadium in New Jersey, and the selected host for the Final of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, scheduled for July 19, 2026. The stadium is one of only two NFL venues that are shared between two franchises. Since 2010, the schedule has been split between the New York Giants and the New York Jets, while the only other shared arrangement is SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, which is the home of the Los Angeles Rams and the Los Angeles Chargers. Due to this dual tenancy, MetLife hosts more regular-season NFL games than any other venue in the league, up to 20 per season, not counting preseason or playoff games. Both franchises established the New Meadowlands Stadium Company, LLC, a 50/50 joint venture, to build and operate the facility, with the underlying land leased from the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority (NJSEA) for an initial 25-year term, with options to extend the lease up to 97 years. The Meadowlands is situated in a natural wind corridor, and the decision to build without a roof was intentional. Proposals to include a roof collapsed during planning, due to funding disputes, which additionally ruled the venue out of hosting indoor events such as the NCAA Final Four. Regulars who have attended Giants and Jets January games often describe the cold as part of the home-field advantage, and visiting teams accustomed to domed or warm-weather conditions tend to struggle in the windchill. For the 2026 World Cup, the existing FieldTurf Core System will be replaced with natural grass, following the same protocol that was successfully executed at MetLife for Copa America 2024 and for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup Final (Chelsea 3, Paris Saint-Germain 0). The venue has already demonstrated that it can handle globally-watched events. On February 2, 2014, Super Bowl XLVIII was hosted at MetLife, which was the first cold-weather outdoor Super Bowl in league history, with a game-time temperature of 49°F (9°C). Other major events have included WrestleMania 29 (2013) and WrestleMania 35 (2019), each of which drew more than 80,000 fans, Copa America 2024 matches including a semifinal, and concerts from Bruce Springsteen, U2, Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, and Ed Sheeran, whose June 11, 2023 show set the venue concert record at 89,106 attendees. The July 19, 2026 World Cup Final is expected to exceed all of them in global reach, as the 2022 Qatar Final was watched by an estimated 1.5 billion viewers, and projections for 2026 are above 2 billion. The Meadowlands Rail Line of NJ Transit runs directly from Secaucus Junction to the stadium. The ride takes about 10 minutes, and the station is located basically at the gates. → From Manhattan: Any NJ Transit train from Penn Station (33rd Street) to Secaucus Junction can be taken, followed by a transfer to the Meadowlands line. The total journey is roughly 30 minutes. Round-trip tickets are typically $5-10. → From Newark Airport: The AirTrain can be taken to Newark Penn Station, then NJ Transit to Secaucus Junction, and finally the Meadowlands line. About 45 minutes in total. The stadium is situated on I-95 (New Jersey Turnpike) and Route 3. GPS address: 1 MetLife Stadium Drive, East Rutherford, NJ 07073. → From the George Washington Bridge: I-95 South to Route 3 East. About 25 minutes without traffic. Tailgating is a fixture of Meadowlands Sundays. FIFA will almost certainly be more restrict