Sports
‘Gouged’: World Cup fans to pay ‘insane’ $150 for NY stadium train ticket
NEWARK: World Cup fans will have to pay $150, more than 10 times the normal price, for the quick round-trip train between New York and Meadowlands stadium when it hosts the tournament’s final and seven earlier matches, local officials said Friday, drawing outrage.
The 36 miles (56 km) round trip for visitors to the sports complex in New Jersey, just outside New York City, usually costs only $12.90.
“We are going to charge $150 for our roundtrip ticket on our system. So from New York to MetLife, MetLife back to New York,” said Kris Kolluri, the president and CEO of NJ Transit, using another name for the stadium.
Just 40,000 train tickets will be available for the eight matches at the stadium, which usually hosts the New York Jets and Giants NFL teams.
But driving will be even more expensive.
Limited parking options at $225 a space will be available at the stadium for fans with disabilities and in an adjacent mall for other supporters, according to the Just Park site.
New York resident Guy Dixon, 42, told AFP “I feel like that’s an embarrassment and shame, and it’s taking advantage of the fans.”
Trading blame
New Jersey’s recently sworn-in Governor Mikie Sherrill defended the state transit organisation’s policies, saying on X Friday that “Fifa put zero dollars towards transporting World Cup fans.”
The deal between Fifa and the previous New Jersey leadership also “eliminated parking” at the stadium, requiring the rail service to transport four-times as many fans as it usually does, she said.
“This agreement will cost NJ TRANSIT at least $48 million, while Fifa is positioned to make $11 billion during the World Cup.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer also wrote on social media on Tuesday, as initial reports emerged in The Athletic, that Fifa should foot the bill for transport costs to World Cup venues.
But Fifa, which is already facing severe criticism over the sky-high cost of many match ticket prices, called New Jersey’s move “unprecedented.”
The soccer world governing body’s World Cup chief operating officer Heimo Schirgi said the move to “arbitrarily set elevated prices and demand Fifa absorb these costs is unprecedented.”
“No other global event, concert or major sporting promoter has faced such a demand. While Fifa is projected to generate approximately $11 billion in revenue, not profit, as the governor incorrectly claims, Fifa has always been a not-for-profit organisation,” he added.
Fifa said previously that the original host city agreements “required free transportation for fans to all matches.”
At the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, fans could use the Doha Metro for free with their matchday tickets.
A re-negotiation stipulated that transport would be offered “at cost” on match days, Fifa added previously.
‘Insane’
A French supporter group called the pricing “completely insane”.
“Every day there’s bad news about transportation — you really have to wonder how far this madness is going to go,” said Guillaume Aupretre, a spokesman for the “Irresistibles Francais” fan organisation.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul also took aim at the reported price hike.
“Charging over $100 for a short train ride sounds awfully high to me,” Hochul wrote on X.
Some $100 million in US federal funding has been allocated to host cities for transit network costs, including $8.7 million for Boston and Massachusetts, and $10.4 million for the New York-New Jersey area, according to local media reports.
England’s Football Supporters’ Association (FSA) chief Thomas Concannon told the BBC “every single thing coming out of this tournament so far is just fans getting fleeced.”
“The price is obviously astronomical in terms of what you would expect to pay going to a match,” he said Friday.
“We weren’t expecting to be gouged.”
BARCELONA:
Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski said Saturday he is leaving the club this summer at the end of his contract.
The veteran Polish forward, 37, scored 119 goals for Barcelona in 191 games across all competitions since joining from Bayern Munich in 2022.
Lewandowski helped Barca to three La Liga titles, including this season’s trophy, and the Copa del Rey in 2025.
“After four years full of challenges and hard work, it’s time to move on,” said Lewandowski in a post on Instagram.
“I leave with the feeling that the mission is complete. Four seasons, three championships.”
The forward joined with Barca at a low ebb and struggling financially, helping restore them to the Spanish throne and also compete for the Champions League.
“Barca is back where it belongs,” continued Lewandowski.
“I will never forget the love I received from the fans from my very first days. Catalonia is my place on earth.”
Lewandowski will play for the last time at Barcelona’s Camp Nou stadium on Sunday against Real Betis, with coach Hansi Flick confirming he will start.
“He spoke with the team, said goodbye, and that it was a great time for him here in Barcelona,” said Flick, who also coached Lewandowski at Bayern Munich.
“I’ve worked with Robert now for years, and we won together nine (trophies), all the titles I’ve won were with him.
“For me it’s a privilege to work with him. He’s a professional player… every day he gave the best with his body to be at the highest level.
“He’s a perfect role model for young players… this is why he’s still playing at this level.”
Flick said Lewandowski was a “fantastic human, but also a world-class player”.
“Thank you, Robert Lewandowski, for every goal, every (bit of) fight, and every magical moment wearing these colours,” said Barcelona on social media. “He arrived as a star, he leaves as a legend.”
Lewandowski is one of the most prolific strikers of his generation and finished as La Liga’s top scorer in his debut campaign under Xavi Hernandez.
This season Flick rotated him up front with Spain international Ferran Torres, with Lewandowski scoring 18 goals in 44 games.
The striker did not confirm his next destination but has been linked with clubs in Saudi Arabia and the United States
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Napoleon Solo took home the 2026 Preakness Stakes on Saturday, the 151st running of the race.
The favorite in Taj Mahal, the 1 horse, was in the lead from the start until the final turn until Napoleon Solo made his move on the outside and took the lead at the top of the stretch. As Taj Mahal fell off, Iron Honor, the 9 horse, snuck up, but the effort ultimately was not enough.
Napoleon Solo opened at 8-1 and closed at 7-1. Iron Honor, at 8-1, finished second, with Chip Honcho fishing third after closing at 11-1. Ocelli, one of just three horses to run both the Kentucky Derby two weeks ago and Saturday’s Preakness, finished fourth at 8-1.
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A Preakness branded starting gate is seen on track prior to the 151st Preakness Stakes at Laurel Park on May 16, 2026 in Laurel, Maryland. For the first and only time, Laurel Park is hosting the Preakness Stakes which is the second race of the Triple Crown jewel due to the traditional home of the race of the Pimlico Race Course undergoing complete renovations. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
A $1 exacta paid out $53.60, while a $1 trifecta brought in $597.10. But someone out there is very lucky, as a $1 superhighfive – picking the top-five finishers in order – paid out $12,015.70.
Even moreso, a 20-cent Pick 6 – picking the winners of the six consecutive races, with the final being the Preakness, paid out $33,842.34.
The race was run without the Kentucky Derby winner for the second year in a row. After Sovereignty did not run the Preakness last year – and wound up winning the Belmont Stakes – the training team of Golden Tempo opted to skip the Maryland race.
From 1960 to 2018, only three Derby winners did not run in the Preakness. Three Derby winners have skipped the Preakness in the last five years, and for the sixth time in eight years, for various reasons, the Triple Crown had already been impossible to accomplish by the time the Preakness even rolled around.
“I understand that fans of the sport or fans of the Triple Crown are disappointed, but the horse is not a machine,” Golden Tempo’s trainer, Cherie DeVaux, told Fox News Digital earlier this week.
Paco Lopez, right, atop Napoleon Solo, edges out Iron Honor, ridden by Flavien Prat, to win the 151st running of the Preakness Stakes horse race, Friday, May 15, 2026, at Laurel Park in Laurel, Maryland. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
CHERIE DEVAUX REFLECTS ON MAKING KENTUCKY DERBY HISTORY AS FIRST FEMALE TRAINER TO WIN THE RACE
Only three horses from two weeks ago – Ocelli, Robusta, and Incredibolt, were back at the Preakness. Corona de Oro, the 11 horse on Saturday, was scratched well ahead of the Derby, and Great White, who reared up and fell on his back after becoming startled shortly before entering the Derby gate, took the 13 post on Saturday.
The Preakness went off roughly 24 hours after a horse died following the completion of his very first race.
Hit Zero, trained by Brittany Russell, came into the race as the favorite. However, he finished last in the race, which was won by another one of Russell’s horses, Bold Fact — and upon crossing the finish line, Hit Zero reportedly began coughing, dropped to his knees, then put his head down and died.
The Preakness took place at Laurel Park as Pimlico undergoes renovations. It was the first time ever that Pimlico did not host the race, moving roughly 20 miles south.
Paco Lopez, atop Napoleon Solo, wins the 151st running of the Preakness Stakes horse race, Friday, May 15, 2026, at Laurel Park in Laurel, Maryland. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
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The Belmont Stakes, the final Triple Crown race, will take place on June 6. The race will return to Saratoga for a third year in a row as Belmont Park continues to be renovated.
Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Sports
Athena goes above and beyond to retain title at Ring of Honor’s Supercard of Honor, eyes legendary reign
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Athena has been one of the most dominant champions across pro wrestling and that dominance continued on Friday night at Ring of Honor’s Supercard of Honor.
The Ring of Honor Women’s World Championship was up for grabs in a Survival of the Fittest six-way match. Athena had to outlast Billie Starkz, Maya World, Trish Adora, Yuka Sakazaki and Zayda Steel. Chairs, ladders and other foreign objects would enter the match through the night.
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Athena enters the ring during the women’s pro-wrestling event Stardom at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo on Jan. 13, 2025. (Etsuo Hara/Getty Images)
While Athena eliminated Steel early, putting down the rest of her opponents was not an easy task. Athena found herself in a precarious position. Competitors stacked chairs on top of each other and Adora made use of them. She chokeslammed Athena through them during the match.
Sakazaki even tried her best to keep Athena down.
Athena was laid out on a table. Instead of going to the top turnbuckle to hit a splash, Sakazaki springboarded herself off the top rope in the middle of the ring and hit the Magical Girl Splash onto Athena and through the table.
Still, Athena was undeterred.
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Athena needed to go nearly 10-feet up onto a ladder. She flipped off it and hit World with the O-Face. She then pinned World, completing the final elimination.
Athena has now eclipsed 1,253 days as the Ring of Honor women’s world champion.
She told Fightful earlier in the week that her goal was to surpass Bruno Sammartino’s reign as champion. The legendary pro wrestler held the WWWF World Heavyweight Championship for 2,803 days at the height of his career.
“Hey man, when we get to Supercard of Honor this week and I beat the epic Roman Reigns’ last championship run, I just want you to know that I’m gonna be so petty,” she said. “I want everyone to know that we are gonna have the pettiest celebration ever. We’re gonna have kittens, green apple skittles, whiskey, tequila, you name it. … But we are just gonna have a big smorgasbord of a party. We’re gonna have a cookout. It’s gonna be amazing.
“But like I said before, my goal is Bruno Sammartino. Seven years, baby, seven years. But you know what, when you’re ‘forever champion,’ what’s years? What’s years? A lot of people think that might be getting ahead of myself. But at the end of the day, I’ve been champion for over—what is it 1,250 days or something like that? I don’t see this anytime soon.
Athena enters the ring during the women’s pro-wrestling event Stardom at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo on Jan. 13, 2025. (Etsuo Hara/Getty Images)
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“Hell, all these girls that are in this match think that they’ve learned something by experiencing Athena, but I’m ever changing, ever evolving. That’s just the way I’ve always been and there’s not gonna be a harder worker than me. As I’ve said before and I’ll say it again, no man can touch my reign, no woman can live up to my legacy. I am the forever Ring of Honor Women’s World Champion. It’s about time y’all get over it.”
It’s clear that the “Forever Champion” is focused on being just that.
Supercard of Honor results
Bandido and Ryusuke Taguchi compete in a bout during the New Japan Pro-Wrestling ‘Best of Super Jr.’ at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo on May 24, 2019. (Etsuo Hara/Getty Images)
- Sammy Guevara def. Action Andretti.
- Rush def. LSG.
- Mina Shirakawa and Queen Aminata def. Janai Kai and Lacey Lane.
- Dezmond Xaver and Myron Reed def. Ariya Daivari and Tony Nese.
- Nigel McGuiness def. Josh Woods.
- Red Velvet def. Viva Van to retain the Ring of Honor Women’s World TV Championship.
- AR Fox def. Lio Rush to retain the Ring of Honor World TV Championship.
- Deonna Purrazzo def. Diamante to retain the Ring of Honor Women’s Pure Championship.
- Lee Moriarty def. Ace Austin to retain the Ring of Honor Pure Championship.
- Dalton Castle, Truth Magnum, Turbo Floyd def. Carlie Bravo, Shane Taylor and Shawn Dean to win the Ring of Honor Six Man Tag Team Championship.
- Mark Davis def. Xelhua to retain the AEW National Championship.
- Bandido def. Blake Christian to retain the Ring of Honor World Heavyweight Championship.
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