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New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani campaigns to make soccer afforable as $5 tickets launched
27 Apr 2026 09:30 CDT |
6 min read
News
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has pledged to make watching soccer more affordable in the United States through a new partnership with NWSL outfit Gotham FC.
While FIFA are receiving daily criticism for the exorbitant prices of World Cup tickets, Mamdani has countered the greed with a new initiative to provide $5 tickets for Gotham FC's upcoming fixture against Boston Legacy at Sports Illustrated Stadium on 9 May.
Standard prices for the match are $22 but after the $5 tickets were released, the match sold out within a couple of hours.
“We’re teaming up with the nation’s two-time champions to make soccer more affordable for everyone,” Mamdani announced to his 11.7 million social media followers while donning a Gotham FC shirt.
“This is the summer of soccer. Grab your tickets. I’ll see you there.”
Mamdani has been a soccer fan all his life and has a special affinity for Premier League giants, Arsenal.
As a supporter of the game, he is eager to make it as affordable as possible for everyone.
He previously launched the 'Game over Greed' campaign which lobbied FIFA to stop the dynamic ticket pricing that has been a major talking point ahead of the 2026 World Cup in North America.
“As a lifelong soccer fan, I have grown up with memories of the World Cup, whether watching on TV or being there myself,” Mamdani told The Athletic in October.
“I went in 2010 to South Africa. I know what this tournament represents, which is the most popular tournament in the world, and also what it could be, which is a celebration of the world’s game.
“Yet these kinds of policies from FIFA are ones that threaten to price out the very people that make this game so special. In our fight for making the most expensive city in America affordable, it’s a fight that is not limited just to housing, childcare and public transit. It also extends to the moments that give New Yorkers such joy, which will be the World Cup next year.”
FIFA ignored that campaign and continued with the dynamic pricing model which resulted in World Cup tickets being, at the very least, three times more expensive than the 2022 tournament in Qatar.
This week, four tickets appeared on an official resale site with a $2.2 million price tag. FIFA receive 15% of that as commission.
New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani supports Arsenal
Yes, Mamdani is indeed a Gooner. Born Uganda, he moved with his family to New York at the age of seven, and it was thereafter that he began watching soccer and Arsene Wenger's Arsenal in particular.
“My uncle is an Arsenal fan,” Mamdani told the New York Times.
“He introduced me. Wenger was one of the first managers to really bring African players into the EPL. I grew up with Kolo Toure, [Nwankwo] Kanu, Alex Song, Lauren and Emmanuel Eboue.
"I had the Invincibles as magnets on my fridge. I loved David Seaman, Sylvain Wiltord, all these guys. I’ve gone to a few Arsenal games, many with my uncle. It really has been a big part of my life and my identity.”
A member of Football Twitter is now officially the mayor of the biggest city in North America. pic.twitter.com/ycZSxYnBa1
— Zach Lowy (@ZachLowy) November 5, 2025
In the past, he has tweeted from his personal account things like:
"Never thought I’d be more hopeful about socialism than Arsenal yet here we are." (2020)
"Coming to terms with the fact that this will be a season where my only pleasure will likely be Spurs Inevitable collapse." (2020)
“Just had a constituent sign my petition because I’m an Arsenal fan." (2024)
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