Chamber to City Council: the World Cup summer delivered — now make it last, and make it reach every neighborhood

 

Testifying at a joint oversight hearing on the economic impact of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, MCC President & CEO Jessica Walker lays out five lessons from the summer and a fix for each.

 

NEW YORK, NY — September 30, 2026 — Manhattan Chamber of Commerce President & CEO Jessica Walker testified today before the New York City Council's Committee on Small Business and Committee on Economic Development at a joint oversight hearing on the economic impact of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Speaking on behalf of 125,000 Manhattan businesses, Walker told the Council that the city delivered a strong summer and now has a window to lock in those gains for every future major event and every neighborhood.

The tournament generated an estimated $2 billion in economic activity and 12,000 jobs, and sports bars saw sales rise 16 percent. MCC's own analysis of Placer.ai foot-traffic data found that domestic visitors to Manhattan rose 8.3 percent during the tournament, the strongest gain of any borough.

But the summer also exposed where the city left money on the table. Walker identified five lessons, each paired with a fix:

1. The benefits stayed in the core. Washington Heights, Inwood and East Harlem, the neighborhoods with the deepest ties to the competing nations, saw domestic visits fall 5 to 8 percent. Fix: a funded five-borough tourism initiative that plans spillover in advance and allows more fan zones and block parties in neighborhood corridors for every future major event.
2. New York sent visitors to New Jersey. Airbnb data shows 55 percent of guests who booked in New Jersey looked at New York City first, while hotels trailed last year for most of the tournament and affordable options were off the market. Fix: pass Intro 879, letting owner-occupants of one- and two-family homes host guests, and narrow the 2021 hotel special permit.
3. Coordination came late. Tournament planning straddled a mayoral transition, and business groups and BIDs were brought in after key programming and promotion decisions were made. Fix: a standing mega-event playbook with business groups at the table from day one.
4. The night ended early. Visitors who wanted to keep going found bars and restaurants closing early, because boilerplate community board stipulations ban dancing and live music at ordinary restaurants and force most new venues to close by midnight on weekends. Fix: stipulation standards and a pilot of 24-hour districts.
5. Street life has nowhere to go. Watch parties and Soccer Streets proved the demand, but fees of up to $66,000 a day and a street-fair moratorium mean that energy disappears when the tournament ends. Fix: a single-window, sliding-fee street-event permit.

"We had the world's attention this summer," Walker said. "Let's use it to reclaim our title as the city that never sleeps, and make sure the party reaches every neighborhood."

The full testimony follows below.

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Full Testimony

Testimony of Jessica Walker, President & CEO, Manhattan Chamber of Commerce, before the New York City Council Committee on Small Business and Committee on Economic Development — Oversight Hearing: Assessing the Economic Impact of the 2026 FIFA World Cup — September 30, 2026

Good afternoon, Chairs. I'm Jessica Walker, President and CEO of the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce, representing 125,000 businesses.

New York delivered this summer. Two billion dollars, 12,000 jobs, sports bars up 16 percent. Our own Placer.ai analysis found domestic visitors to Manhattan rose 8.3 percent during the tournament, the strongest gain of any borough.

But the summer taught us five lessons, and each points to a fix.

First, the benefits stayed largely in the core. Washington Heights, Inwood and East Harlem, the neighborhoods with the deepest ties to the competing nations, saw domestic visits fall five to eight percent. Mega-event traffic does not spread on its own. The fix is a funded five-borough tourism initiative that plans spillover in advance and allows more fan zones and block parties in neighborhood corridors for every future major event.

Second, we sent visitors to New Jersey. Airbnb's data shows 55 percent of guests who booked in New Jersey looked at New York City first. Hotels trailed last year for most of the tournament while affordable options were off the market. The fix is Intro 879, letting owner-occupants of one- and two-family homes host guests, and narrowing the 2021 hotel special permit.

Third, coordination came late. Planning for the tournament straddled a mayoral transition, and business groups and BIDs were brought in after the key decisions on programming and promotion had been made. The fix is a standing mega-event playbook with business groups at the table from day one.

Fourth, visitors who wanted to keep the night going often found bars and restaurants that closed early. Boilerplate community board stipulations ban dancing and live music at ordinary restaurants and force most new venues to close by midnight on weekends — even when mega events arrive. The fix is stipulation standards, and piloting the creation of 24-hour districts.

Fifth, the watch parties and Soccer Streets proved the demand for street life, but fees of up to $66,000 a day and a street-fair moratorium mean that energy disappears when the tournament ends. The fix is a single-window, sliding-fee street-event permit.

We had the world's attention this summer. Let's use it to reclaim our title as the city that never sleeps, and make sure the party reaches every neighborhood. Thank you.