FIFA Club World Cup: Dortmund midfielder Gio Reyna of Bedford
Borussia Dortmund midfielder Gio Reyna, who grew up in Bedford, hopes the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup encourages more Americans to watch soccer.
Provided by FIFA Communications
EAST RUTHERFORD — Gustavo Flaibam has about 1,200 more miles to travel to support SE Palmeiras in the FIFA Club World Cup. And that’s the shortest part of his journey.
Flaibam flew in from Sao Paulo, Brazil on June 14 with his daughter, Sofia; nephews Guido and Mateus, and Sofia’s fiancé, Pedro Giovannone. They picked up a rented RV that sleeps five, and proceeded to redecorate “Motorhome Alviverde” in Palmieras style: bright green, with accents of the pig and bird mascots.
The Flaibams saw Palmeiras’ scoreless draw against Porto in the MetLife Stadium opener on June 15, drove to Boston on June 18 for some sightseeing, then back to New Jersey for a 2-0 victory against Al Ahly on June 19. After that, the motor home was heading 1,200 miles to Miami, with at least one stop in Washington, D.C.
On June 23, Palmeiras is slated to play at Inter Miami, one of three Major League Soccer teams in the Club World Cup.
“It’s emotional to be here, and to be a Palmeiras fan,” 28-year-old Sofia Flaibam said. “We never imagined playing here. It’s like a dream. It’s not normal. The experience is a bit different.”
For her father, the difference is uniquely American. Gustavo Flaibam highlighted the individual player introductions before each match, saying “You prepare a game like a show. It’s like a fight.”
Club World Cup bringing fans, families together
Launched in 2000 and expanded this summer, the FIFA Club World Cup brings together 32 teams to play 63 matches across the United States over a month. The semis and final will be back at MetLife Stadium on July 8, 9 and 13.
Teams qualified either by winning a continental title — UEFA Champions League, CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores, etc. — in the past four years, or via a ranking system based on their performance in those competitions.
A billion dollars will be shared among the participating teams. During the group stage, teams earn $2 million for each win or $1 million for a draw. The winner could earn up to $125 million, the largest prize pool for a FIFA tournament.
“It’s different, because mostly they’re friendly games when teams are here. This is the first time we get to see competitive games in the U.S.,” said Dean Khalil of Union, who attended the June 19 match with his father, Mohamed, who lives in North Brunswick.
Dean Khalil wore a white No. 10 United States national team jersey with Christian Pulisic’s name on the back. His father, who emigrated from the Cairo suburbs, was in Al Ahly red. He reminisced about being at the Meadowlands for the MetroStars’ first match back in 1996.
“I’m more of an MLS fan myself. When you look at the growth of soccer in this country, it’s impressive.”
Leandro Lacerda expects his daughter, Julia, to be a third-generation Palmeiras fan. Leandro and his wife Natalia took a New Jersey Transit train to MetLife Stadium on June 19 with the ponytailed 6-year-old. With some prompting, Julia slowly listed all the different transportation methods the family had used to get to the Meadowlands from their home in Houston: airplane to Newark Airport, PATH from a Jersey City hotel to Hoboken, and about 45 minutes on two trains.
Leandro Lacerda wore a custom Palmeiras jersey with his last name above the number 53, the year his father, Jose was born. It is a tribute to Jose Lacerda, who died two years ago.
“I’m teaching my daughter how my father taught me, with the same energy,” Leandro Lacerda said, as Natalia interpreted from Portuguese. “It’s a dream. Brazilian people love football. The passion is really big about soccer, about the clubs.”
Is NJ Transit ready for soccer fans?
New Jersey Transit is running trains to the Meadowlands specifically for Club World Cup matches, with added buses to help disperse fans afterward. About 13% of the crowd took trains to MetLife Stadium for each of the first two matches.
More than 9,000 left via trains and buses on June 15, and 7,000-plus on June 17.
But MetLife Stadium was less than half full for each of the first three matches.
With fans in the upper deck for the first time, attendance rose slightly to 35,179 on July 19, with seemingly about 70% in Al Ahly red. Palmeiras’ traditional green-and-white was mainly in one end zone, which exploded into song and waving flags as their team went up, 1-0, on an own goal right in front of them in the 49th minute.
It is the first goal scored in the three Club World Cup matches at MetLife Stadium.
The match was paused in the 62nd minute due to hazardous weather in the area, shortly after Jose Manuel Lopez gave Palmeiras a 2-0 lead. Play resumed about 45 minutes later, with the fans seeming no less enthusiastic.
With about five minutes left, Palmeiras fans unfurled wide, plastic streamers from the back of the lower bowl to the front row.
“Soccer is embedded into our culture. Ever since we were little, we’re watching,” said Gil Pereira of Maywood, owner of Rutherford-based F5 Remodeling, who emigrated from Paraná in southern Brazil when he was 13.
“It just came with me. Ever since I know myself as a soccer fan, I’ve been a Palmeiras fan, and I get to pass it on to (my 5-year-old son, Romeo).”
The Club World Cup semis and final next month may provide a better gauge for any issues New Jersey Transit may face next summer. But NY/NJ World Cup Host Committee CEO Alex Lasry said there’s no comparison between the two tournaments — for economic impact, communications, transportation or anything else. To him, the World Cup will be “exponentially bigger than anything.”
Lasry grew up in Manhattan, but has lived in Milwaukee until relocating back recently. He has had firsthand experience commuting on public transit from New York City to the organizing committee’s Newark headquarters. He predicted “a seamless transportation experience” for the World Cup next summer.
“You know you have a good public transportation system where people are using it,” Lasry said at a press event in Manhattan on June 9. “The uniqueness of our public transportation (system) is we’ve got one that works. We’ve got one that takes you to where you need to go. I have the utmost confidence is going to be one of the crown jewels of the World Cup experience.”
