Sports cannot become a luxury, says Mamdani, outlining plans to air World Cup throughout New York

NEW YORK, June 18 : New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani plans to put World Cup matches on hundreds of kiosks across the five boroughs, as the city's leader who ran on a platform of affordability says he wants to make sports more accessible to average fans.

A selection of matches will air on the 55-inch LinkNYC digital screens that are scattered on street corners throughout the city and usually display ads or public service announcements.

Mamdani negotiated with the NBA to put two games of the NBA Finals on the displays this month, a move intended to allow New Yorkers without access to broadcast TV or streaming to watch their beloved Knicks break a 53-year title drought.

"Whatever infrastructure we have, we should be using it to make it easier to be a part of the game," Mamdani told Reuters on Thursday. 

"We are going to be broadcasting a few games to hundreds of kiosks across the five boroughs. And it is going to be an opportunity for New Yorkers to really lose themselves in the World Cup, much of the way that we've all lost ourselves in this incredible run from the Knicks."

Politico previously reported that plans for screening the games were quietly underway.

World Cup games have proven more expensive than ever to attend, as the United States co-hosts the tournament with Canada and Mexico. Dynamic ticket pricing put the games out of reach for many fans, with the get-in price for games in New York/New Jersey and Miami approaching $1,000 in the run-up to the tournament.

The 34-year-old Mamdani, a Democrat who bucked the political establishment and galvanized young voters last year, worked with the New York New Jersey Host Committee to secure 1,000 affordable tickets for New Yorkers to attend the tournament, priced at $50 apiece,