Foxborough and the Kraft Group Reach Agreement for World Cup Matches at Gillette Stadium
Foxborough, Massachusetts, the Kraft Group and the Boston Soccer 2026 organizing committee have reached an agreement that will allow the approval of the necessary license to hold seven World Cup matches at Gillette Stadium. This resolution ends a prolonged dispute less than a week before a vote that could have determined the fate of the matches in the city. The conflict revolved around almost 8 million dollars that Foxborough was requesting to cover police expenses. The city refused to use taxpayer funds, awaiting reimbursement from federal funds that had been delayed. However, a joint statement from the city, the organizing committee, and a company headed by Robert Kraft, owner of the New England Patriots, announced that all parties “have reached a collective understanding” that will allow the city and the organizing committee to finalize the details of the agreement. This will lead to the approval of the license by FIFA at the next meeting of the Foxborough board of directors on March 17, which had been set as the final deadline.The statement thanked several public officials, including Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey, for the development of the security plan. Foxborough had maintained a firm stance on the matter, intensifying a confrontation that had become tense in recent days, pitting a small New England town against a global soccer giant, its affiliated organizing committee, and a company headed by a powerful NFL owner. During a meeting on March 3, the Foxborough select board faced two lawyers from the organizing committee. At the meeting, the organizing committee said for the first time that it would pay the security funds, if necessary, within two business days of receiving the invoice. The Kraft Group, which owns the stadium and regularly requests a similar license for Patriots games, would fund any deficit. If he is not paid, he can terminate the license. The next soccer match will not be held. Gary Ronan, lawyer for the organizing committee However, board members immediately challenged the organizing committee on the purchase of safety materials and the deadline for the materials to be in place, as outlined by the Foxborough police and fire chiefs. Then, on March 6, the board president, Bill Yukna, issued a statement, making it clear that no agreement had been reached.As part of this agreement, the people of Foxborough will not incur any cost or financial burden related to the FIFA World Cup, with Boston Soccer 2026 providing upfront funding for capital expenditures related to security and the entirety of the deployment that public safety officials have determined is necessary to execute the event with the backing of Kraft Sports + Entertainment.
Joint Statement
In response to a follow-up inquiry, the board sent a second statement on March 6, saying it was “shocked and dismayed” by statements made to the media by the Kraft Group and other event organizers, suggesting that an agreement had been reached with the city. The board’s statement added: “That such entities have miscalculated the cost of hosting the World Cup is not a reason to compromise the safety of the event. The city cannot and will not finance the Kraft Group’s losses by sacrificing public safety.” The organizers seemed bewildered, unable to explain the origin of the city’s comments. In a statement, the Kraft Group said: “At no point in this process has the Kraft Group claimed to have reached an agreement with the people of Foxborough.” The Kraft Group noted that the company was not the license applicant or the organizing committee, but that it had made a “good faith effort” to work with the city and prepare a “historic event”. The city administrator, Paige Duncan, did not respond to repeated requests to clarify statements the city said the Kraft Group made to the media. The depth of the division between both parties became evident at a meeting on March 3 in which city officials insisted on the full and immediate funding for the purchase of necessary security equipment well in advance of the seven matches to be held at Gillette Stadium. Peter Tamm, lawyer for the organizing committee, responded with a slide presentation that aimed to outline the legal limits of the board’s authority in relation to the approval of the license. He could consider security, he said, but could not deny the license based on the “refusal to agree to the advance payment of the expected costs”. The city’s lawyer disagreed. The meeting ended shortly after. On March 5, the organizers sent a letter to the city in which they pledged to pay the public safety costs two business days after receiving the invoice. It also stated that the organizing committee had $2 million in an account and expected to receive at least $30 million more. Kraft Sports & Entertainment, a division of the Kraft Group, offered to back the financing if necessary, according to written documentation also provided. The Kraft Group stated in a statement that it was “committed to financially ensuring” that the city’s security needs are met. It added that the World Cup matches at Gillette Stadium would not be “revenue-generating events,” but would generate “a significant amount of tourism and visibility for the state.” Adding to the uncertainty about funding is the situation of the $625 million that the federal government has allocated to the 11 U.S. host cities “to improve security and preparedness.” But the money from the Department of Homeland Security has been delayed due to a congressional freeze on funding related to immigration enforcement. Boston, which is 25 miles from Foxborough, was named host city in June 2022. Foxborough Police Chief Michael A. Grace said on March 3 that security planning has been underway for a year and a half. The public dispute over funding has intensified since January. The Gillette Stadium is scheduled to host its first match on June 13, when Scotland faces Haiti.What they have presented is essentially an agreement with themselves, but those terms do not meet the city’s requirements and will not be sufficient to meet the city’s needs to provide security services for these events.
Bill Yukna, board chairman
