World Cup Final Security Causes Two-Hour Queues

Fans are waiting up to two hours outside New York New Jersey Stadium before the 2026 World Cup final kicks off between Spain and Argentina at 15:00 local time (22:00 SAST).

The cause is security. US President Donald Trump is attending the match in person — the only World Cup game he is watching live — and the United States Secret Service has taken over full security operations at the 82,500-seat venue as a result.

Two layers of screening are in place. The Secret Service handles one tier while the Transportation Security Administration, normally responsible for US airport security, operates the other. Supporters and media are being processed through airport-style scanners. One media member who reached an entrance was redirected to a different queue because no security dogs were available to search bags at that gate.

Gates opened at 11:00 local time, four hours before kick-off, with additional entrances unlocked sporadically to ease the backlog. World Cup volunteers at the ground told BBC Sport the early-arrival numbers far exceeded those at any of the previous seven matches played at the stadium.

No delay to kick-off is expected at this stage. Spain and Argentina are set to go head-to-head for the biggest prize in football, with billions watching worldwide — including a massive South African audience tuning in through the early hours of Sunday morning.

First reported by BBC Sport Football.