Scranton eyed as fan zone when FIFA World Cup soccer comes to Philadelphia

Scranton hopes to host one of three “fan zones” in Pennsylvania when the FIFA World Cup soccer tournament comes to Philadelphia next summer.

Running June 11 through July 19 in various locations in the United States, Mexico and Canada, the World Cup soccer tournament is billed as the largest sporting event in North American history.

With Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field hosting six World Cup matches from June 14 through July 4, World Cup organizers and the state plan to make Scranton, Reading and Pittsburgh official alternative destinations for the legions of soccer fans who will not be able to get tickets to matches in Philadelphia or attend its festivities at Lemon Hill park there, officials said.

During a Scranton City Council meeting on Nov. 25, Scranton Mayor Paige Gebhardt Cognetti spoke about Scranton potentially becoming one of three FIFA “activation” fan zones when the World Cup descends on Philadelphia.

“We have an opportunity next summer to be a FIFA activation zone. The World Cup, as you all know, it’s across the United States. Philadelphia is one of the main locations and there will be a game in Philadelphia on the Fourth of July,” Cognetti said, according to an Electric City Television video of that meeting. “So we and Reading and Pittsburgh are likely, we’re hoping, we’re very, very close to being one of three activation zones across the state. It would be very, very exciting for the region, very exciting for Scranton and for Lackawanna County.”

Getting designated as a fan zone also would dovetail with Scranton’s 160th anniversary and the nation’s 250th anniversary, Cognetti said.

“We think that would be a real boost for us from an economic development and just the morale perspective next year. We’ll have the 160th anniversary of the city of Scranton, the 250th anniversary of our country. If we also can also add on some cool sports and hopefully with that, maybe even a new soccer pitch somewhere in the city, with FIFA, that would be very exciting.”

Scranton site not finalized

Selection of the fan zone venue site in Scranton remains underway, said Meghan O’Donnell, a spokeswoman with Philadelphia Soccer 2026, the state-established committee that’s planning and executing the FIFA World Cup event for the City of Philadelphia.

The location of a fan zone in Scranton has not been finalized, O’Donnell said, noting the committee’s applications for public viewing sites are pending review and approval by FIFA and the Fox network.

“We are working with Scranton, Reading and Pittsburgh. Nothing is official” yet regarding the selection of any of those locations, O’Donnell said Monday.

As for how many days the three fan zones outside of Philadelphia might operate, O’Donnell said, “It will likely differ by location and be up to the fan zone on when they would activate.”

FIFA stands for the French phrase Fédération Internationale de Football Association, which translates in English to International Federation of Association Football, and with football in this case meaning soccer.

The FIFA “Round of 16” match on July 4 in Philadelphia also will coincide with the City of Brotherly Love being at the epicenter of the America 250 event, which is the 250th Anniversary celebration of the United States of America.

Pennsylvania also expects to host millions of other visitors in 2026 with the combination of an NCAA March Madness game and MLB All-Star Game, also both in Philadelphia, the NFL draft in Pittsburgh and the PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, according to the state.

Big impacts

Philadelphia Soccer 2026 cites an economic impact study projecting the World Cup will have a $770 million impact in Pennsylvania, including $51 million in tax revenue for the state.

And the state hopes to spread that impact around, by moving visitors beyond host cities and inspiring travel throughout the state, state Tourism Deputy Director Anne Ryan told the state House of Representatives’ Tourism, Recreation and Economic Development Committee in April.

The year of “2026 is Pennsylvania’s biggest tourism opportunity in a generation,” Ryan said. “And let me be clear, it is not the norm for a single state to host so many marquee events in a single year. It is as exceptional as it is exciting … we will turn every event in 2026 into a catalyst for statewide exploration and lasting economic impact.”

Regarding FIFA in Philly, “The World Cup celebration won’t stop in Philadelphia,” Ryan said. “We’re positioning Pennsylvania as the central home base for World Cup fans” along the East Coast.

MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, also will host eight FIFA matches, starting June 13 and culminating with the World Cup Final July 19. Scranton’s proximity to Philadelphia and the New York metro area might make it a go-to fan zone destination for tournament tourists in Northeast Pennsylvania, and beyond.

The fan zones in Scranton, Reading and Pittsburgh would feature “jumbotrons,” food and beverage, youth soccer events and much more, “creating a World Cup atmosphere in every region, drawing visitors from surrounding states and injecting new energy in our regional economy,” Ryan said.

About 70% of the people who travel to FIFA World Cup games don’t even have tickets or expect to get into matches, but they go anyway to participate in the events and their energy and ethos, Ryan said. The state hopes that its fan zones will give people alternative places to participate.

“We don’t want any Pennsylvania resident to have to drive more than two hours to be in the FIFA environment,” Ryan said. “We’re hoping that these fan zones, outside of Lemon Hill and Philadelphia, will be great for our residents of course, but then they can also act as a tourism draw” to those fan zone areas and surroundings.