As World Cup mania sweeps Southern California, early June numbers show game-day ridership on L.A. Metro is high. Reports from riders are mixed—from frustrations about long travel times to praise for avoiding L.A. traffic—and Metro points to sharp spikes in sta
For many fans, the hardest part of the World Cup isn’t the match itself. It’s getting there through a city that turns dense—fast—when thousands arrive at once.
At the center of that scramble has been L.A. Metro. May delivered a jolt in ridership, and then the World Cup brought a new kind of pressure: game days, watch parties, and stadium crowds lining up across Southern California.
Ignacio Santa Cruz, traveling to Los Angeles from Asuncion, Paraguay, to watch his national team play the U.S. on Friday, didn’t hide his frustration after trying to move around the city on transit. “The transit is impossible,” he said. He added that for routes across Los Angeles, “you can expect at least 45 minutes of rides.”.
Not everyone described the trip the same way. Gary Mackenzie, in town from Scotland for the FIFA Fan Festival at L.A. Memorial Coliseum on Saturday, compared driving in his home country to navigating here. “The roads here compared to back home are pretty crazy, man,” he said. Mackenzie considered “hiring a car” but decided against it. “I’m pretty glad I did. … I’m really using public transport, which has been fine.”.
The contrast reflects what Metro has been seeing since the start of the World Cup surge: enthusiasm and intensity—along with the experience of being swallowed by the crowd, depending on where you’re going and when you’re riding.
Metro said that last month’s ridership boost came after the long-awaited D Line extension along Wilshire Boulevard combined with the L.A. County Fair, Kia Forum concerts and events at the L.A. County Museum of Art. The D Line extension added about 8,000 to 10,000 additional riders per day, and Metro reported year-over-year ridership up 9.5%. Metro also pointed to early June figures showing that game-day ridership is high for Metro.
The question now is what those crowds mean for a system already tested by stadium weekend rhythms. Metro doesn’t offer a definitive answer yet, but it shared figures tied to the World Cup and specific matchdays.
For the U.S.-Paraguay match last week. Metro said total ridership increased for the World Cup and near certain watch parties. At the Exposition Park. USC Metro E line stop. Metro reported a 598% increase in total rider taps on Friday compared to a typical day. At the A line Memorial Park stop in Pasadena. near the Pasadena Civic Center watch party Friday. there was a 7% increase in fare gate taps.
Metro also emphasized safety. The agency said it has seen “no safety issues” amid World Cup enhanced services and that there has not been an increase in safety issues with its regular system since the World Cup began.
L.A. Metro spokesperson Maya Pogoda wrote in an email that Metro deployed “an engaged and visible presence of uniformed personnel from Metro’s Department of Public Safety Ecosystem.” Pogoda said L.A. police, Sheriff’s Department and security officers as well as transit agency ambassadors are deployed across the system. She added. “We are pleased that there have been no safety issues with our World Cup Enhanced Services. and there has not been an increase in safety issues with our regular system since the World Cup began.”.
That matter of readiness is hard to separate from what’s coming next. With L.A. set to host the Olympics in two years, concerns have circulated about whether the city can move people efficiently on public transit during an event on that scale.
Conan Cheung, the chief operations officer for L.A. Metro, told The Times earlier this year that the goal was to “keep our system accessible.” He said the program was being planned to ensure Metro would “support people from the minute they decide to come to L.A. for the World Cup.”
For many fans, avoiding the worst of L.A. traffic was part of the appeal. The cost of showing up by car has been a sticking point even for those who could afford it. At SoFi Stadium. parking cost up to $300 per car during the World Cup. on top of already sky-high ticket prices. and gas prices were also a concern.
On Monday at Union Station in downtown Los Angeles, many in line told The Times they used Metrolink to connect with the gameday bus to SoFi Stadium at Union Station.
Metro said bus services set up by Metro and its partners carried 18. 541 people to the stadium for Friday’s U.S. vs. Paraguay match—arranged from 15 locations across Southern California. For Monday’s Iran-New Zealand match, Metro reported 26,206 people used those bus services, a 41.3% jump over the previous game.
Metro said those efforts offered more than just a way to get through the World Cup. “With the Olympics and Paralympics Games coming to our region in two years, the World Cup service has been a good chance to prepare for moving a lot of fans at once,” the agency said.
Even so, not everyone embraced Metro options.
Andrew Rori Moore of Palmerston North, a town on New Zealand’s North Island, told The Times he and a friend decided to walk and take rideshare everywhere. “We’ve just done a bit of Uber so far and a bit of walking everywhere,” Moore said. “It’s just been super easy, which has been nice.”
The World Cup is still in motion. and Metro’s early numbers and rider reports don’t point to a single. clean verdict. Instead. they lay out a familiar reality for a city built on distance: when the crowd arrives. the journey can feel either like a lifeline—or like a lesson in how long it can take to get from where you are to where you need to be.
L.A. Metro World Cup SoFi Stadium D Line extension transit ridership Los Angeles traffic Union Station Exposition Park USC E line Pasadena A line Metrolink FIFA Fan Festival safety
Metro worked for me like once and then it was a mess again lol
Why are they testing anything when the crowds are literally the whole point of the World Cup? Sounds like LA Metro just can’t handle regular traffic either. Also 45 minutes sounds way too short if you’re getting anywhere near the stadium.
Public transport in LA is always impossible, like it’s designed to punish you. I saw some dude say the D Line extension fixed everything but then people were still stuck forever, so idk what to believe. Maybe they should just close the metro on game days and force people to walk?
I mean at least it’s better than driving because LA traffic is literally insane… BUT if you miss the timing you’re screwed. They keep saying ridership spikes “sharply” which makes it sound planned, like Metro knew everyone would show up. I guess it depends where you’re starting from though, like if you’re close it’s fine and if you’re across town you’re paying with your sanity.