Scandinavian invasion! Norwegian fans swarm Boston Stadium for World Cup match against Iraq

We are ready for more World Cup excitement here in Foxboro. In case you haven't heard, tonight Iraq and Norway. Six o'clock. Tickets for this match have sold out on FIFA's website. If you don't have tickets, you can always see the game right here on Boston 25. And Iraq will have plenty of support tonight, if what we saw last night is any indication. Many Iraqi fans flooded downtown crossing in Boston. They waved flags, they cheered, they marched through the area showing support for their nation. Norway fans are already here at Boston Stadium. They caught up earlier today and this morning with our Jean and Nicole and told them what else they plan to do while they're here in the United States. You guys are hanging in Boston for a bit. You're looking, you got some sights you can want to see? Yeah, I can't say that on TV. You can. Say the restaurant. Yeah, we're gonna try out the Hooters. We don't have that in Norway. They did tell Jean and Nicole that they plan to explore all of Boston, not just stay in Hooters 24-7. When in Rome though, right? I guess so. Yeah, you're right. The reviews from the first World Cup coming in here Saturday night, they were pretty positive, right? We talked about the train, the commute was not too bad, but it's going to be a little bit different today because the six o'clock game is going to coincide with the six o'clock evening commute. Let's go to Boston 25 News anchor Kelly Sullivan. She was outside the stadium today giving us an idea of what we should expect and how to plan ahead. Well, tonight's game is at six o'clock, much different from Saturday when the game was later at nine o'clock and it was also a weekend, so traffic wasn't too bad. Today it's going to be a much different story with the game happening right as people are heading home from work. Also, kids are still in school except for Walpole-Foxborough. They're being released early from school today. Regardless, officials hope that it's another easy day on the roads and on the rails. Now for the Haiti-Scotland game on Saturday, we know that 20,000 fans took the commuter rail to Boston Stadium. Many others took buses to get to the game since there are only 5,000 parking spots available at Boston Stadium. People who live and work around the area say they were prepared for the influx of soccer fans. We had our staff here early. We had fully staffed, so we really didn't 100% know what to expect, but it went what we thought and it went great. So again, we'll be here early, prepared, and we'll just take it as it comes. So here's how things will work today. The parking lots open here at Boston Stadium at 2 p.m. Gates open at 3 p.m. Train check-in at South Station, that already started at 11.15 a.m. The last train leaves for Foxboro at 3 this afternoon. And MassDOT wants drivers to be prepared, to also be patient. They've done a few things to help them out. The HOV lanes, they open early on the expressway southbound at 1 o'clock this afternoon. Also, no construction projects, road projects happening in the Foxboro area today. Reporting from Boston Stadium, Kelly Sullivan for your local station, Boston 25 News. All right, Kel, thank you. Yeah, so the message here is plan ahead and remember this, that Summer Street, that is now closed from Purchase Street to Dorchester Ave until 5.30 tonight. That's so that thousands of people can queue up at South Station, get in the lines there, and then get on the trains and head on down. So we've talked about the traffic. We've talked about the weather. We've talked about the schedule. Let's talk about the fans a little bit and FIFA FanFest, because when we've had major events here in Boston, Stanley Cup Finals, World Series, All-Star Games, the leagues and FIFA being the league, so to speak here, have put on all these things. If you've never gone to them, they've got to go to FIFA FanFest. It's really a party there. Yeah, free to go. You've got to sign up first. Opens at 2 o'clock today. Boston 25 News reporter Lisa Greschi standing by at City Hall with what's to come. I'm on scene here at the FIFA FanFest where fans are getting ready to be let inside. We're told fans can come in starting at 2 o'clock. That's just in time for the 3 p.m. game. And there is a lot to do, including right here behind me, a lot of fan activations. The fans can really get in, get in the mix. And these virtual reality experiences really have the fans feeling like they are part of the match. There's also, of course, going to be the food and drink and the atmosphere. All of these fans have been enjoying for the last couple of days now. Fans have been lining up early just to get into the FIFA FanFest. And again, the matches are at 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. The one over at Boston Stadium at 6 p.m., that's a big one that fans will surely be able to watch here at FanFest and really rooting those teams on. For now, on scene in Boston, I'm Lisa Greschi for your local station, Boston 25 News.