With the matches gone, here are three ways the World Cup fever is still thriving in Philly
From free concerts at Fan Fest to half-priced FIFA swag, Philly still has its tentacles all-in on soccer as the World Cup comes to a close this weekend.
Less than a week remains in what has been quite the summer of soccer already, thanks to the FIFA World Cup making a pit stop in South Philly and delivering six matches all while bringing a party to the Greater Philadelphia Region.
In fact, Philly hasn’t started basking in an afterglow just yet. The FIFA Fan Festival in Lemon Hill, which already committed to remaining open for the full 39 days of the tournament, is still bringing the noise to the Brewerytown section, with a week of scheduled concerts.
This is in addition to showing the semifinal rounds between France and Spain on Tuesday (3 p.m., Fox29) and England and Argentina on Wednesday (3 p.m., Fox 29), all taking place before Sunday’s final match (3 p.m., Fox 29) at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.
Oh, and if you’re into consolation matches, don’t forget the third-place game on Saturday (5 p.m., Fox29).
» READ MORE: The USWNT will play reigning World Cup champion Spain at Subaru Park in October
However, there are a few things that still have an attachment to Philly when it comes to the World Cup. We found three, from the obvious of what’s going on this final week at the Fan Festival, to the not so obvious that you still will want to check out if you’re looking for a lasting piece of the world’s biggest sporting event.
Totally free concerts
Philadelphia Soccer 2026 has been keeping the party going with a free concert series that sold out the event on back to back nights with concerts by Wisin on Sunday and the pop punk group the All-American Rejects, packing the house — on a Monday night.
There are still two more concerts to go, with electronic music legend Deadmau5 slated to arrive on Thursday and pop star Bebe Rexha scheduled to close it down on Friday. Both concerts will start promptly at 7 p.m., with festival gates opening at 5 p.m. on both days.
» READ MORE: Deadmau5 and Bebe Rexha are headed to FIFA Fan Festival this week
Get your World Cup gear (on the cheap)
If you were wondering why your local CVS has been a primary supplier of World Cup gear, so were we. Everything from hats, water bottles and other tchotchkes has been on display for the latter part of a month. However, the retail price of some of that merchandise made it a tough call to pick up any swag.
Not anymore. As of Monday, several CVS Pharmacy stores are selling FIFA merchandise at up to 50% off, and a manager at a Montgomery County location who preferred to remain anonymous informed this reporter that merchandise could drop to up to 70% by the end of the month. So if you were eyeballing that $30 FIFA baseball cap, or that $35 coffee mug, know that you can get it on the low in the same place you pick up your seasonal allergy medication.
The game is still on
World Cup fever is still here throughout the city courtesy of a number of mini pitches that have popped up all over the city. From Fishtown to Queen Village, people are taking advantage of the fields that have been installed to provide more places to introduce the sport.
Most notably, Bank of America, which installed a series of small fields on the site of the old Tip Top Playground near the foot of the Girard Station stop on the Market-Frankford Line in Fishtown/Northern Liberties, which has had decent crowds coming through for pickup games, particularly during the week.
When you take into consideration that these games are going on under a July heat, not only is it impressive, it also confirms that the game always had a grip on Philly, but with the World Cup, it would appear that grip has gotten a bit tighter.
In this World Cup, underdogs have stolen the spotlight, the U.S. men made a notable run and Philadelphia not only welcomed the world but gave visitors a crash course on just how real the curse of the Rocky Statue can be.
Join Jonathan Tannenwald, the Inquirer's soccer writer, and host Lisa Carlin, analyst for CBS Sports Golazo, as they dissect the matches, the moments, and more as Philly has its moment in soccer's brightest spotlight. Watch our latest episode right here.
Watch previous episodes:
Episode 1: The Wait is Over!
Episode 2: Groups, Goals, and Glory
Episode 3: Electric Action in Philly
Episode 4: The Knockout Rounds Begin!
