{"id":477341,"date":"2026-02-19T06:49:11","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T06:49:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/477341\/"},"modified":"2026-02-19T06:49:11","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T06:49:11","slug":"foxborough-threatening-to-block-world-cup-games-over-7-million-security-issue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/477341\/","title":{"rendered":"Foxborough threatening to block World Cup games over $7 million security issue"},"content":{"rendered":"

Foxborough, Mass., is threatening to give the seven 2026 World Cup matches slated to be hosted at Gillette Stadium a red card if it doesn\u2019t get an answer on where the more than $7 million in security costs are going to come from \u2014 and when they will come.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Foxborough has not signed off on the needed entertainment license for the matches at the Patriots\u2019 home stadium, and during Tuesday\u2019s town select board meeting, Foxborough leaders made it known that until they can get a clear answer, they will not issue the license.\u00a0<\/p>\n

As part of Gillette Stadium hosting World Cup matches, the Kraft Group is leasing the Stadium to FIFA, and in order to sign their temporary landlord-tenant agreement, the town needs to sign off on the entertainment license.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\" A general view of the game between the New England Revolution and the D.C. United during the first half at Gillette Stadium on November 01, 2020 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Getty Images<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not prepared to issue this license unless everything is in place,\u201d select board vice chair Stephanie McGowan said, according to the Boston Globe<\/a>. I\u2019ve seen people saying, \u2018Oh, there\u2019s no way, they won\u2019t [issue the license].\u2019 I\u2019m going to tell you, this board will not issue this license.\u201d<\/p>\n

The concern for the Town of Foxborough select board members is the cost of having to foot the security bill for the World Cup matches at Gillette Stadium, which will be dubbed Boston Stadium for the tournament, when it is an international event.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve got to be honest with you, it baffles my mind that you guys are sitting here in front of me right now and we still have no idea where this money is coming from,\u201d select board member Mark Elfman told host committee CEO Mike Loynd and two FIFA reps in attendance at Tuesday\u2019s meeting.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m shocked you\u2019re not sitting right here in front of us right now, saying, \u2018We\u2019ve got the money for you.\u2019 Shocked.\u201d<\/p>\n

The town has said it cannot afford to front the $7.8 million cost needed for security for the 39-day spectacle, with board member Bill Yukna describing it as \u201cthe equivalent of seven Super Bowls here.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Boston Globe previously reported<\/a> that Foxborough was supposed to receive an answer about the funding on Jan. 30, but Loynd mentioned on Tuesday night the uniqueness of the current situation.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Boston Host Committee said that grant funding will cover security costs, but they are waiting on the White House Task Force and FEMA to dole out the money.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe White House task force is working on a daily basis to work with DHS and FEMA on that. I don\u2019t think I can say anything more about that. We\u2019re being told it\u2019s expected any day now,\u201d Loynd said, according to WBZ-TV<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"AA general view of the flyover prior to the AFC Divisional Playoff game between the New England Patriots and the Houston Texans at Gillette Stadium on January 18, 2026 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Getty Images<\/p>\n

A spokesman for the Boston Host Committee did not immediately respond to The Post\u2019s request for comment.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The select board meets again on March 3 and the license issuance deadline is set for March 17.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey said Wednesday that she is confident \u201cthat this will all get sorted out,\u201d but comments from the select board on Tuesday seemed to paint a less certain picture.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou guys are still looking at us saying, \u2018We don\u2019t know where it\u2019s coming from,\u2019 and we have townspeople who are saying, \u2018There\u2019s two billion-dollar organizations that are running this, the Krafts and FIFA \u2014 what\u2019s the problem?\u2019\u201d Elfman said. \u201cAnd now we\u2019re coming around to where we\u2019ve got to wait on grant money from the federal government. Flabbergasted.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Foxborough, Mass., is threatening to give the seven 2026 World Cup matches slated to be hosted at Gillette…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":477342,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[69],"tags":[8731,403,99,84938,153412],"class_list":{"0":"post-477341","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-soccer","8":"tag-boston","9":"tag-soccer","10":"tag-sports","11":"tag-world-cup","12":"tag-world-cup-2026"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/477341","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=477341"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/477341\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/477342"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=477341"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=477341"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=477341"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}