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Reading, Scranton, and Yinzerville Getting World Cup Fan Zones
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Philadelphia, PA (March 26, 2026) – Governor Josh Shapiro and Visit PA, in partnership with Philadelphia Soccer 2026 today announced the official locations of three “Pennsylvania World Cup Fan Zones,” which will bring the electricity of the world’s biggest sporting event to communities across the Commonwealth. The Fan Zones, championed by Governor Josh Shapiro to ensure that every Pennsylvanian can experience the magic of FIFA World Cup 2026™, will be located in Pittsburgh, Reading, and Scranton — bringing free, world-class public viewing events to tens of thousands of fans.
Branded under Pennsylvania’s dynamic “Visit PA” tourism office, these Fan Zones will amplify and complement Philadelphia’s 39-day FIFA Fan Festival™ at Lemon Hill Park — extending the World Cup’s energy and economic impact far beyond Southeastern Pennsylvania. Each Fan Zone will offer large-screen broadcasts of FIFA World Cup 2026 Knockout Round matches, live entertainment, interactive soccer fan experiences, and food and beverages — all free of charge and designed to be accessible to fans of every background.
Fan Zones will be located in:
- Pittsburgh — Pittsburgh Football Stadium, home of the Pittsburgh Steelers
- Reading — Reading Arena, a downtown multi-purpose arena
- Scranton — Lackawanna County Courthouse Square, an iconic outdoor park in the heart of downtown Scranton
When they say “Reading Arena,” they mean the Santander right there on Penn Street, between 7th and 8th. Right downtown. They’re gonna do broadcasts in English and Spanish because Reading has a huge Latino community these days, and a bodega on every other corner, which is a compliment. Personally, I think they should have put a huge projector on top of the Pagoda and broadcasted the World Cup games into the sky, like the bat signal, but the arena will suffice.
In Pittsburgh, fans will finally see winning football at Acupuncture Stadium. Heyo! Scotland vs. Haiti on a big screen will get more fans than Pitt vs. Notre Dame back in the Fall. Seriously. That was so embarrassing. PITT had the worst College Gameday of all time. Temple’s College Gameday back in 2015 had more fans.
And in Scranton, I’ve never been to this Courthouse Square, but a drone shot from DiscoverNEPA.com looks pretty dope:
Kevin has been writing about Philadelphia sports since 2009. He spent seven years in the CBS 3 sports department and started with the Union during the team's 2010 inaugural season. He went to the academic powerhouses of Boyertown High School and West Virginia University. email - k.kinkead@sportradar.com