São Paulo at the NY/NJ Stadium | OneFootball

France and Senegal will face off at the 2026 World Cup at New York/New Jersey Stadium, the name FIFA is using for the venue during the tournament, and the Tricolor has a record of three matches at the site — though not exactly in the same stadium…

On June 4, 1981, São Paulo traveled to East Rutherford, New Jersey, to take on the New York Cosmos — perhaps the most famous team in the United States to this day, and one that had counted Pelé among its players years earlier.

The team was on a break from the Campeonato Paulista and was embarking on a series of international matches and tours. On May 21, it had beaten Italy’s Milan 2-1 in Milan. Five days later, it won 3-0 in Mexico, at the Azteca. Then came two draws: on the 28th, a 0-0 against Mexico’s Tecos UAG in Los Angeles; and an entertaining 3-3 against the United States’ Fort Lauderdale Strikers in Florida.

The clash was part of a campaign by São Paulo’s board to build the club’s profile and brand abroad, establishing partnerships and exchanges in management and even players. Three months earlier, São Paulo had already hosted Cosmos at MorumBIS — and won 3-1, with goals from Paulo César and Renato (2).

The “return” match was scheduled for the Giants’ stadium, home of New York’s American football team, and drew a large crowd: 53,617 people. Better known as “The Meadowlands,” the stadium existed until April 2010, when it was demolished and rebuilt on the same site as the current New York/New Jersey Stadium, which also opened in 2010. The famous nickname, however, remains valid for the new venue.

The match itself was difficult: the Tricolor fell behind twice over the 90 minutes. Chinaglia, from a free kick, opened the scoring for the home side in the first half, and Renato equalized in the second half, only for Di Bernardo to put the Americans ahead again shortly afterward. It was only in stoppage time that Tatu sealed the final score. 2-2.FULL MATCH

06/04/1981. International Friendly: Single Match. East Rutherford (United States), Giants Stadium – The Meadowlands.NEW YORK COSMOS 2 x 2 SÃO PAULO

SPFC: Toinho; Nei, Oscar, Darío Pereyra (Élvio) and Gassem; Almir, Renato and Heriberto; Paulo César, Serginho Chulapa and Valtinho (Tatu). HEAD COACH: Carlos Alberto Silva. GOALS: Renato, 12/2; Tatu, 46/2.

OPPONENT: Birkenmeier, Eskandarian, Iarusci, Durgan, Risbergen, Di Bernardo (Seninho), Van Der Eltst, Bogicevic, Wegerle, Chinalia, Borja (Hulcer). HEAD COACH: Hans “Hennes” Weisweiller. GOALS: Chinaglia (free kick), 12/1; Di Bernardo, 16/2.

That was not, however, the only time São Paulo played there. Two years later, on June 2, 1983, during another break in the state championship, the Tricolor once again faced NY Cosmos and this time came away successful.

In a match valid for the Transatlantic Cup, Careca put on a show and scored all three Brazilian goals, but the contest was once again evenly matched, with the winner coming only at the very end.

MATCH HIGHLIGHTS

06/02/1983Transatlantic Cup: Single Stage (Single Round). East Rutherford (United States), Giants Stadium – The Meadowlands.NEW YORK COSMOS 2 x 3 SÃO PAULO

SPFC: Waldir Peres; Getúlio, Oscar, Darío Pereyra and Marinho Chagas; Zé Mário, Renato and Humberto; Paulo César, Careca and Zé Sérgio. HEAD COACH: Mário Travaglini. GOALS: Careca, 24/1; Careca, 35/2; Careca, 44/2.

OPPONENT: Birkemmeir, Eskandarian, Iaruci, Beckenbauer, Neeskens, Ricky Davis, Romerito, Bojicevic, Moyers, Chinaglia, Cabanas, Di Bernardo. HEAD COACH: Julio Herculano Pedroso Mazzei. GOALS: Bojicevic, 33/1; Romerito, 29/2.

It was the Tricolor’s only positive result in that international tournament — before that, it had lost 4-2 to the Seattle Sounders at the Kingdome in Seattle, and afterward, 5-3 to Fiorentina, also at The Meadowlands.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.