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Of course, it was a great party – with great food and drinks, great music and a great atmosphere. New Jersey Hispanic Chamber of Commerce or New Jersey Pride Chamber of Commerce Know what to expect.
But last week’s countdown to the 2026 FIFA World Cup took place at the American Dream – exactly two years after the first World Cup was held at the American Dream. MetLife Stadium — does more than just create a raucous atmosphere, it provides an opportunity for small businesses from minority chambers of commerce to participate in the world’s largest sporting event.
The event, co-hosted by two chambers of commerce, not only sold the expected 350 tickets, but also added about 100 attendees before the end of the evening.
It’s a great start, said Luis De La Hoz, president of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
“Not only did this event showcase our passion and spirit to the World Cup and local officials, it also provided us with an opportunity to network with those officials and other businesses,” he said. “It also showcased our diversity to officials who were looking for diversity.”
The key, Drahoz said, is for these businesses to be proactive.
“We realized we couldn’t wait for other organizations to give us anything,” he said. “If we wait for someone to give us an opportunity, we’re going to face the same outcome as we did in the Super Bowl (held at MetLife Stadium in 2014), when we only got one catering opportunity.
“We need to create those opportunities.”
Gus Penaranda, executive director of the Pride Chamber of Commerce, couldn’t agree more.
As someone who has been working for many years to establish direct links with FIFA (Click here to view the diversity and inclusion campaign he created)—Penaranda said the gathering not only showcased the business talents of the minority chamber of commerce, but also showed those members the various opportunities available to them in sports.
“The World Cup countdown event is meant to set an example for the small business community and while we are working with the host committee and the state government to host the World Cup, there are many other things to do,” he said. “We have representatives from the two Major League Soccer teams in the area.
“Our approach shows small businesses that we don’t need them to wait for someone else to host an event. We can do it ourselves. What we did (last week) can be replicated in different forms across the state to help small businesses in different areas that may not be directly impacted by the Philadelphia and New Jersey games.”
Hispanic Chamber of Commerce CEO Carlos Medina said getting there is just a critical first step.
Medina said he was pleased to see many businesses that don’t normally attend the event. He said he was pleased to see officials from the New York/New Jersey Hospitality Committee, including co-managers Lauren LaRusso and Bruce Reifman. He said he was grateful that representatives from three Latin American consulates came to attend.
“Getting out there and networking is a critical step,” Medina says. “It’s like a gym membership; if you don’t use it, you’re not getting any benefit from it.
“We can create opportunities, but if you don’t take advantage of any of them — if you don’t apply the lessons we teach in our entrepreneurship classes — you won’t benefit.”
The good news is: There are plenty of other opportunities to come. The Countdown is the first of three planned for American Dream. There will be more to come.
Medina said the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce hosts dozens of events each year and will look for ways to incorporate the World Cup into all of them. He said the chamber will try to get World Cup or state officials involved as much as possible to help raise awareness for both sides.
“We will be very active during the World Cup,” Medina said.
And throw lots of great parties along the way.
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