POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: The T’s big match

 

The T’s big match

By KELLY GARRITY 

 

08/18/2025 07:29 AM EDT

ON TRACK — The MBTA has faced its challenges, but next year will be a whole new ball game.

In less than a year, throngs of soccer fans from across the world will head to Foxboro for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Many of them — 20,000 per game, according to estimates — are expected to get there via the MBTA’s commuter rail, a line that typically handles around 10,000 passengers a day, at a station where work on infrastructure upgrades kicked off last week. No pressure.

They’ll have to run four times more trains than they have for other headline-grabbing events at Gillette Stadium — namely the Army/Navy game and Taylor Swift concerts.

The recent budget bump for the T laid a solid foundation, but the “World Cup is a completely different mega-event,” MBTA General Manager Phil Eng told reporters last week.

“It's going to be seven games that are Super Bowl-like,” Eng added, plus 39 days of the associated “Fanfest” events — think watch parties and mini soccer games. Exactly where that’ll take place isn’t settled yet, though organizers are eyeing Boston’s City Hall Plaza.

Also up in the air: the cost of making the necessary tweaks to the station, line and train schedule, and who will pay for it. The T is hoping to get a slice of the $400 million for transit for the event that host cities are asking Congress to set aside. And leaders at the agency have been talking to the Kraft Group about costs they might cover. The company paid for the design of the changes to the T station that abuts the stadium, and discussions are ongoing Eng said during an MBTA board meeting last week.

For now, some transit-watchers are optimistic. “It's a big undertaking,” Brian Kane, executive director of the MBTA Advisory Board, told Playbook. But “I think the T will last the occasion.”

“At the end of the day, the MBTA is really going to find a way to deliver the services we need, not only for [the] World Cup, but the important part is how do we deliver the services for the people that use our system 365 days a year?” Eng said.

GOOD MONDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Tips? Scoops? Following the FIFA preparations? Drop me a line: kgarrity@politico.com. 

TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey has no public events. Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll attends a presentation and tour on rural housing creation at 11:30 a.m. in Greenfield and announces another round of literacy launch grants at 12:30 p.m. in Easthampton. Sen. Ed Markey hosts a walking tour and press conference celebrating Boston’s African American history at noon in Boston. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu signs an executive order creating a new internal technology plan at 10:30 a.m.

Playbook isn’t just a read — it’s a daily listen. Jack Blanchard and Dasha Burns bring unmatched reporting and analysis on the power plays shaping Trump’s Washington. Hear the latest now.

DATELINE BEACON HILL

—  Massachusetts State Police spent $217,000 on luxury hotel stays, international flights, and more by Rick Sobey, Boston Herald: “Mass State Police shelled out more than $200,000 on stays at 4 and 5-star hotels from Aruba to Florida, along with international flights and other expenses during the last fiscal year. The Herald is sifting through state agencies’ taxpayer-funded credit card expenditures — finding that Mass State Police racked up $217,957 in procurement card (P-card) expenses in fiscal year 2025. That includes stays at Aruba’s Manchebo Beach Resort & Spa for a total of $6,050, and Aruba’s Bucuti & Tara Beach Resort for a total of $4,344. MSP also had a $1,320 bill for a rental car in Aruba.”

BOSTON HERALD PROPAGANDA RAG PAY WALL

BACK TO SCHOOL — Massachusetts Secretary of Education Patrick Tutwiler talked federal funding, antisemitism in schools, the post-MCAS leaning standards landscape, school cell phone bans and more on WCVB’s “On the Record” Sunday. Watch here.

FROM THE HUB

— Suffolk Sheriff Steven Tompkins relies heavily on employees for campaign donations by Matt Stout and Danny McDonald, The Boston Globe: “In his 12-plus years as Suffolk County sheriff, Steven W. Tompkins has wielded the weight of his office to get his opponent’s campaign signs removed, land his niece a job, and, prosecutors now allege, extort a cannabis company. The department has played another role, too: Its workers are integral to stocking Tompkins’s campaign account. Since starting his second full term in January 2023, Tompkins has relied heavily on donations from those who work for him, and then used huge chunks of what he raised to repay himself nearly $45,000 in loans and cover a bill from a law firm that represented him in a past ethics probe. Outside of monthly payments to a campaign consultant, those accounted for the largest campaign expenses he reported.”

— Difficult search leads Boston mayor to waive residency requirement for first Franklin Park director by Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald: “The Wu administration had such difficulty identifying a qualified local candidate to oversee Franklin Park that it had to obtain permission to waive Boston residency for a year for the park’s first executive director, who was announced on Friday. The City of Boston has hired Luis Perez Demorizi, who departed his role as director of parks and open space for the City of Newton, to become the inaugural executive director of Franklin Park, Mayor Michelle Wu’s office said. His hire becomes effective on Sept. 15. His annual salary will be $140,000. Other than the new Franklin Park executive director, the city has requested no other residency waivers this year, a Wu spokesperson said Friday.”

BOSTON HERALD PROPAGANDA RAG PAY WALL

— A ‘rat safari’ in Allston sheds flashlight on rodent problem. by Jessica Ma, The Boston Globe.

FROM THE DELEGATION

—  Katherine Clark, No. 2 House Democrat, says something must be done to stop ‘genocide’ in Gaza via POLITICO: “Democratic Whip Katherine Clark appeared to refer to Israel’s offensive in Gaza as a “genocide” during a forum Thursday, according to video of the event viewed by POLITICO. Clark called on those in the audience to ‘take action in time to make a difference, … whether that is stopping the starvation and genocide and destruction of Gaza, or whether that means we are working together to stop the redistricting that is going on, taking away the vote from people in order to retain power,’ she said at the forum, which was organized by the Friends Committee on National Legislation, a nonpartisan Quaker organization.”

2028 WATCH — Sen. Elizabeth Warren isn’t ready to weigh in on who she wants to see lead the Democratic ticket in the 2028 presidential race.

“That is so far off,” she said during an interview on WBZ’s “Keller @ Large” that aired Sunday. “We’ve got big races that will be coming up of course immediately for us… and then we’re going to have the 2026 midterms all around the country.”

DATELINE D.C.

— Trump's D.C. 'crisis' enters 2nd week with more soldiers — and no exit strategy by Brian Mann, NPR.

— Federal officers detain, tackle moped driver amid Trump D.C. police crackdown by Dan Rosenzweig-Ziff, Katie Mettler, Teo Armus and Emma Uber, The Washington Post.

VIDEO ON LINK BELOW:

Federal officers detain, tackle moped driver amid Trump D.C. police crackdown

MSN

— Trump administration backs down on D.C. police control after striking deal by Daniel Barnes, Kyle Cheney and Nicole Markus, POLITICO.

FROM THE 413

— Complaints, safety concerns and conflicting laws push Berkshire police to adapt to e-bike boom by Dylan Thompson, The Berkshire Eagle: “Ever stopped at a stop sign, looked both ways, and had an e-bike zip by, nearly cutting you off? Dalton Police Chief Deanna Strout says you’re not alone. … An electric bicycle — more commonly referred to as an e-bike — is a bicycle equipped with an electric motor that can help assist with or replace pedaling. It's a form of transportation that is gaining in popularity across busy roadways in the Berkshires, and one that has public safety officials like Strout concerned for the safety of not only those operating the motorized bikes, but also other motorists and pedestrians. It's also leaving officials wondering how to best police those riding them as state and local laws catch up with the evolving form of transportation.”

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THE LOCAL ANGLE

—  A $2.4 Billion Bridge Is Coming to Cape Cod. Their Homes Will Be Seized to Build It. by E.B. Solomont, The Wall Street Journal: “Joan and Marc Hendel were still unpacking their newly built house on Cape Cod on March 3, when their dream of homeownership burst. That day, an employee from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation hand-delivered a letter informing the couple that their house and at least 10 others in Bourne’s Round Hill neighborhood, along the Cape Cod Canal, would be taken by eminent domain to make way for the state’s largest public works project in a generation: a new bridge connecting mainland Massachusetts and the Cape. To locals who frequently sit in crippling traffic driving on and off the Cape, the project has been a long time coming. But as newcomers to the area, the Hendels felt blindsided.”

— Brockton CFO would gain power to approve school department contracts by Chris Helms, The Brockton Enterprise: “Should Brockton's chief financial officer get final say over contracts negotiated by the Brockton School Committee? Brockton City Council is scheduled to debate the idea on Aug. 18…. The move would rework a landmark 1990 law meant to keep the city out of financial trouble. It would spell out that the CFO has the power to certify any school department contract lasting longer than a year. Farwell cited the new contract for school police officers, which in his opinion gave raises that were too high.”

MEANWHILE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE

—  N.H. Republicans threaten to impeach high-ranking Democrat over emails helping partisan law firm by Steven Porter, The Boston Globe: “New Hampshire Republicans have mounted a pressure campaign against one of the state’s highest-ranking Democrats, saying she inappropriately used official resources this month to help a partisan law firm connect with voters who will be negatively impacted by a new state law. Republicans called on Karen Liot Hill to either resign from the state’s five-member Executive Council or face impeachment. They launched a dedicated website with a petition seeking support for her ouster. And they asked the New Hampshire Department of Justice to open an investigation.”

HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH

SPOTTED — At the Hewins Street Block Party: hosts state Rep. Chris Worrell and Boston City Councilor Brian Worrell; Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, Sen. Ed Markey, state Sen. Barry Finegold, state Rep. Brandy Fluker Reid, Boston City Councilor Erin Murphy, Newton City Councilor Martha Bixby, former Boston City Councilor Frank Baker and Boston City Council hopeful Alexandra Valdez. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Jason Furman, GBH’s Sarah Betancourt, and Oskar Hallig.

Want to make an impact? POLITICO Massachusetts has a variety of solutions available for partners looking to reach and activate the most influential people in the Bay State. Have a petition you want signed? A cause you’re promoting? Seeking to increase brand awareness among this key audience? Share your message with our influential readers to foster engagement and drive action. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: jshapiro@politico.com.

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