American Dream Owner Sees World Cup Final As Chance To Change $5B Mall’s Story

When more than 1 million anticipated visitors and upward of $3B flood into New Jersey and New York for the 2026 World Cup, American Dream, the megamall across from MetLife Stadium — where the tournament's final will be held — will be put in a spotlight.

And the Ghermezians, the Canadian family behind developer Triple Five Group and owners of the $5B mall, refuse to let the opportunity to change the narrative go to waste.

“It's going to be hard to miss us. You’d actually have to make an effort to avoid us if you have anything to do with the World Cup in New York and New Jersey,” American Dream Chief Operating Officer Paul Ghermezian told Bisnow. “Having our property in the sunlight will be our debutante ball. We're going to be on full display.”

The 3M SF complex, which includes a Nickelodeon Universe theme park, DreamWorks Water Park and an indoor ski slope in addition to hundreds of shops and restaurants, opened near the end of 2019 and, like other malls across the country, was hit hard by Covid-19 lockdowns. As of Dec. 31, American Dream was 86% leased and sales totaled $553M, up 31% from the previous year but still below the $2B that a 2017 study projected, Bloomberg reported.

For many, headlines of financial difficulty continue to haunt their image of American Dream. Municipal bonds that finance the mall and are backed by New Jersey economic development grants have failed to make interest payments more than once. 

Ghermezian said that the funds for the interest payments come from a state-controlled reserve account, which is outside of Triple Five’s responsibility.  

“It's always frustrating to see articles like that,” Ghermezian said. “One of the things to remember is we are a private, third-generation, family-owned business. So our goal is always the long game.”

In 2022, the developer received a four-year extension for repaying its $1.7B in construction loans, making its new due date October 2026, months after the World Cup final on July 19, 2026.

That’s when sports fans of all backgrounds, and especially high-net-worth travelers, are expected to descend upon East Rutherford.

The face value of the tickets sold to the World Cup Final could run close to $6K. During the 2022 tournament in Qatar, demand for private jets and charter flights surged so much that local airports charged $5K per landing slot, while flight turnaround times that exceeded 45 minutes were slapped with penalties of up to $25K.

American Dream aims to funnel that spending over to the mall. 

The mall’s team has begun to have conversations with developers and retailers in Qatar to seek advice. From those conversations, Ghermezian said American Dream plans to have personal shoppers escort affluent visitors, VIP suites at the waterpark and exclusive dining experiences with chefs like Marcus Samuelsson. 

Its luxury wing, dubbed The Avenue, has signed an influx of leases in the past few months, though many came prior to the World Cup announcement. Recently opened are Ferrari, Amouage, Canada Goose, Zadig and Voltaire, Watches of Switzerland, Rolex, Cartier and Balenciaga, which placed its largest store in the world in American Dream. Soon Gentle Monster, Gucci and Isola Bella will also be opening.

As those shops open, the saturation lures in other tenants, said Chuck Lanyard, president of New Jersey-based retail brokerage The Goldstein Group. He orchestrated Asian grocer HMart’s lease in American Dream and is currently working with a European women’s accessory store to sign a lease on The Avenue. 

“You do have a bit of a captive customer,” Lanyard said. “And then all of a sudden, you're in this one section, the finer shops, it automatically puts a message out to the shopper that even the smaller shops are specialty.”

Ghermezian said that his team is including the World Cup as a selling point to prospective tenants, especially for those who are on the fence.

“We're saying this is like Christmas on steroids,” Ghermezian said.

Still, American Dream must compete with traditional luxury shopping corridors in Manhattan, where many of the games' out-of-town attendees will likely stay. These include Fifth Avenue and SoHo, as well as private stylists who will come to shoppers’ hotel rooms with clothes curated for them. Retail consultant Kate Newlin is yet to be convinced.

"It's not Fifth Avenue. It's not Madison Avenue. It's New Jersey, near the George Washington Bridge," Newlin said. "It's just not a way that real luxe is delivered in our culture."

The increased likelihood of some of those shoppers finding themselves inside American Dream will benefit the mall regardless, said Ron Simoncini, a JLL broker who specializes in the Meadowlands area.

“The accommodations that New York can offer in particular to the high-end traveler are going to attract a lot of the attendees for the game, and those people may never make it to American Dream. That's OK,” Simoncini said. “There's plenty of people who are going to stay in New Jersey, who are in the other cohort of traveler, who just love their team and want to see a game no matter what. They're going to end up in New Jersey, and they will end up at American Dream.”

New Jersey’s blue laws, which prohibit the sale of apparel on Sundays, are also expected to hinder sales. The World Cup final is scheduled for Sunday, July 19, at MetLife Stadium.

Gheremezian said that while the mall would embrace all stores being open on Sundays, it works with government agencies to adhere to the laws. The complex’s amusement parks and non-apparel retailers can remain operational on Sundays. 

American Dream has two years to make its case to World Cup fans. However, it already has some ideas as to how. Ghermezian said that the mall plans to replicate events that it’s had for other sports, such as a series with the NHL, hosting the USA Curling National Championships and The Throne National Championship for high school basketball. 

In 2022, American Dream hosted the World Cup trophy on its world tour. Professional soccer players Kaká, Tim Howard, Carli Lloyd and Melissa Ortiz were in attendance. Ghermezian said that the mall plans to bring some athletes and influencers back for 2026’s World Cup, though he did not specify whom. 

In the meantime, Ghermezian’s calendar is booked with meetings related to the World Cup. In his free time, he’ll throw on an American Dream hat and walk the mall, assisting visitors in finding stores, he said.

“I don't enjoy the challenging headlines, but they don't dissuade me because I know what my plans are and where we're headed,” Ghermezian said. “And with the World Cup, I think we're going to be able to show that to everybody. I think it would be pretty hard to write those things after that point.” 

As to who he’ll be rooting for?

“The Canadian team, we've got a star forward who put on a good show in the last World Cup. So I'm kind of curious to see what will happen there,” Ghermezian said. “But otherwise, come on. It’s USA all the way.”