SCRANTON — Local soccer fans and ’90s music aficionados have a lot to be excited about next month, when the Grammy-nominated bands Hanson and Tonic will perform for free during FIFA World Cup Fan Zone events planned on Lackawanna County Courthouse Square.
Lackawanna County Convention & Visitors Bureau Executive Director Curt Camoni joined city and county leaders Tuesday to announce those and other musical acts set to play the square when Scranton hosts one of just three official Pennsylvania World Cup Fan Zones there July 4, 5, 18 and 19. They forecasted a party atmosphere downtown, with live music and a wealth of activities complementing the live broadcast of World Cup matches on a massive main stage viewing screen planned for the North Washington Avenue side of the square.
Curt Camoni, executive director at the Lackawanna County Convention and Visitors Bureau, speaks during a press conference on the FIFA Fan Zone in the Governor’s Room of City Hall in downtown Scranton Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Matches also will be broadcast on smaller screens — including at least one airing the games in Spanish — located on each corner of the square, which will feature a beer garden, an LED soccer simulator, a kids zone and “skills & drills clinics” hosted by local soccer clubs on a custom turf-field area that will be installed on Biden Street, among other offerings.
The musical lineup kicks off July 4 with Cruel Summer, a Taylor Swift tribute band, followed July 5 by Eco Del Sur, which will perform music from across Latin America, and the “Britpop” tribute act The Wankers. Hanson will perform July 18 before Tonic takes the stage July 19, ahead of the World Cup final.
Tulsa-bred Hanson, best known for their 1997 smash hit “MMMBop,” has a catalogue that also includes “I Will Come to You,” “Where’s the Love” and other popular songs. Los Angeles-based Tonic’s most famous hit, “If You Could Only See,” was one of three singles from their debut studio album, “Lemon Parade.”
“The mission was absolutely to have a festival-like atmosphere and to really blow up these watch zones and fan zones, not only for the people of Scranton and Lackawanna County, but the larger Northeast Pennsylvania region and any visitors that we could bring in,” Camoni said Tuesday before quoting fictional Dunder Mifflin boss Michael Scott of the beloved Scranton-set sitcom The Office. “A very wise man once said ‘there ain’t no party like a Scranton party,’ but that also comes with a heck of a lot of pressure when you’re throwing what could be one of the largest Scranton parties in a generation.”
Times-Shamrock Communications Senior Vice President and Market Manager for NEPA Radio & Digital Terry Deitz speaks during a press conference on the FIFA Fan Zone in the Governor’s Room of City Hall in downtown Scranton. Tuesday, June. 23, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG/ STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Officials feel even more prepared to meet the moment after accommodating massive crowds that recently descended on the city to see the visiting Union Pacific Big Boy 4014, the world’s largest operating steam locomotive, at Steamtown National Historic Site. The 4014 will remain on display next to Steamtown’s nonoperational Big Boy 4012 until it departs the morning of July 1.
Like the Big Boy visit, local leaders expect the World Cup festivities to draw large crowds and be a boon for businesses in and around downtown.
“We’re very excited to be able to look back now on the first week of Big Boy and see that there was a lot of commerce that came into the downtown as a result of all those visitors,” Scranton Mayor Paige Gebhardt Cognetti said, noting some restaurants sold out of food during the influx. “We are looking at I think 85,000 tickets sold for Big Boy, and then we’re looking forward to rolling right in, pun intended, to the FIFA Fan Zone. This is a remarkable month for the city of Scranton, for Lackawanna County, as we celebrate America’s 250th birthday.”
Commissioner Thom Welby echoed the mayor’s excitement, calling the Big Boy festivities “fantastic practice” for local first responders and others who’ve done an “incredible job” managing the large crowds while keeping everyone safe.
Building on that point, Commissioner Bill Gaughan said Courthouse Square will become “the living room of Lackawanna County” during the fan zone festivities, “a place where families gather, friends reconnect and visitors from throughout the region come together to celebrate the world’s game.”
Scranton shares the honor of hosting an official World Cup fan zone with Pittsburgh and Reading, the other two Pennsylvania fan zone cities. Philadelphia, meanwhile, is serving as a U.S. host city for World Cup matches.
“The best economic development strategy is giving people a reason to come downtown — to eat at our restaurants, to enjoy our small businesses — and that’s exactly what this event is going to do,” Gaughan said, describing the diverse mix of domestic and international visitors who came to Scranton to see the mammoth locomotive. “I think we’re going to see the exact same thing here, because there’s people that are not going to want to drive to Philadelphia. They’re going to want to get the experience here in Scranton.”
That Scranton and Lackawanna County were chosen as a fan zone site is a testament to the progress that’s been made locally, he continued.
“So soccer is going to bring people here,” Gaughan said. “What they’ll remember, though, is the experience. They’ll remember a packed Courthouse Square. They will remember great music. They’ll remember local restaurants and businesses. They’ll remember that Scranton and Lackawanna County know how to throw a party, and that’s why we’re so excited about this big announcement today.”
Per a schedule organizers provided Tuesday, Scranton Fan Zone hours are: July 4, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; July 5, from 2-11 p.m.; July 18, from 3-8 p.m.; and July 19, from 1-6 p.m.
Fan zone events are being managed locally by Times-Shamrock Media LLC. Fan zone activities, including the musical performances, are free. Tickets are not required.