Hudson County executive hopeful Craig Guy is pledging to work with Gov. Phil Murphy (D) to bring World Cup 2026 events to the local municipalities.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“Bringing the World Cup to New Jersey is tremendously exciting and as county executive I will continue working with Governor Murphy and his team to ensure that Hudson County is a full participant in the festivities, events and positive economic impact that an event like this can create,” said Guy said in a statement.
“With our extraordinary location, numerous exciting venues all across the county and a large population of soccer fanatics, there’s no better place than Hudson County for World Cup organizers, sponsors and fans to spend their time before and after the tournament. Governor Murphy has been an exceptional advocate and partner on this and I’m certain that he and his team will stay engaged and work towards bringing World Cup events to Hudson County.”
In his role as chief of staff to retiring County Executive Tom DeGise, Guy has been coordinating meetings between officials in the Murphy administration and county tourism personnel for the past six months, his campaign said today.
They did this with a goal of making sure that Hudson County takes part in the worldwide event, which will include nearby MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford as one of its main venues.
Guy’s remarks came just a few hours after the New Jersey Monitor wrote an editorial calling on Murphy to stop letting New Jersey play second fiddle to New York as it relates to the World Cup, citing recent press appearances where he hyped up the Empire State.
“We are not concerned about trivial debates regarding which state is featured more prominently in our branding and will not allow them to distract us from the ultimate prize — the prospect of lifting the World Cup on New Jersey soil,” Murphy spokesman Bailey Lawrence told the outlet.
Murphy endorsed Guy back at his campaign kickoff in September and has reiterated his support several times since then.
Progressive activist Eleana Little is challenging Guy in the June 6th Democratic primary.
