Bottoms up! Outdoor boozing could return to NYC during World Cup 2026

The Big Apple may soon be making some pour changes to its outdoor drinking policies. 

There’s hardly a better combo than catching a game of ball and publicly guzzling booze, so suggests a newly introduced bill aimed at implementing “entertainment zones” — designated hotspots where soccer buffs can freely consume alcohol on NYC streets — during the 2026 FIFA World Cup this summer. 

The bill, issued last week, seeks authorization from the New York Senate, the Assembly, and Governor Kathy Hochul to allow bars and restaurants with existing liquor licenses to serve adult beverages outdoors. 

It’s an effort towards accommodating the influx of sports fans who’ll be flocking to the area for the upcoming five-week face-off, kicking off with a match between Mexico and South Africa on June 11. 

If approved, merrymakers would be allowed to openly down cocktails and brews within the confines of the entertainment — or “sip and stroll” — zones demarcated throughout the city. 

“The tri-state region will be hosting eight World Cup matches, with around 1.2 million visitors expected to travel here during the tournament,” reads the bill, sponsored by Assemblymember Tony Simone, a Manhattan Democrat. 

“This bill would allow municipalities to better accommodate these tourists, spur economic development, and enhance this once in a lifetime experience for New Yorkers and visitors from around the world, just as other host states have done,” the document insists. 

“This bill will not only benefit World Cup fans,” continues the push, “but also the restaurant and hospitality industry, nonprofit organizations, and local and state governments in New York through the expected increase in revenue.”

Money talks. But should drinkers walk? 

Proposals to permit al fresco imbibing have previously been nixed by the powers-that-be of NYC. In fact, during former Mayor Eric Adams’ tenure (2022-2025), NYPD officers issued nearly 10,000 fines to street drinkers in 2023 alone, enforcing efforts to enhance the quality of life for the community at-large. 

But rather than granting revelers an open-ended pass to publicly partake in perpetuity, Simone’s bill, predicated on legislation recently passed in Washington state, comes with specific parameters. 

The doc argues that outdoor liquor service would take effect from “June 1st, 2026 and [end] July 31st, 2026 while setting requirements for enclosures, sharing of spaces, safety, sanitation and worker operations.”

During the submitted timeframe, a total of eight soccer matches will be held at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium, located just minutes outside of midtown. 

But time isn’t necessarily on Simone’s side.  

To get the green light ahead of the tournament, he’d need the approval of the state Legislature and Gov. Hochul, as well as  individual municipalities, such as New York City. The State Liquor Authority would also have to sign off on individual entertainment zones prior to their establishment. 

“ Clearly, we’ll have to move fast,” Simone told Gothamist. “It actually is a more controlled way of ensuring that small businesses can take advantage of the World Cup coming to New York City.”

The potentially positive outcomes notwithstanding, an attorney for the New York City Hospitality Alliance, which represents the bar and restaurant industry, isn’t too optimistic about the bill’s FIFA future. 

“At this late stage, [it’s] not realistic that it will be passed by both houses, signed by the governor and then implemented where NYC could request a special outdoor area to be reviewed by the [State Liquor Authority], all in the next three months,” said Robert Bookman, the alliance’s lawyer. 

A spokesperson for the governor declined to comment on Simone’s bill, per Gothamist, but confirmed that, “Gov. Hochul will review any bill that passes both houses of the Legislature.”

Hochul’s administration is sponsoring two free watch parties for key World Cup matches — including a viewing of the US’ first game at Stony Brook University in Long Island on June 12, and a July 19 showing at Kensico Dam Plaza in Westchester County. 

FIFA is, too, hosting outdoor “fan zones” from June 17 to June 28 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, and from July 4 to July 19 at Rockefeller Center.

Kevin Dugan, of the New York State Restaurant Association — which backs Simone’s bill — noted that Hochul recently let bars sell liquor during the Olympic men’s hockey gold medal game, which took place in the morning hours, when alcohol sales are normally prohibited.

”The governor has shown a willingness to recognize these opportunities when they come along,” Dugan said. 

“Hopefully that this will fit into that category as well.”