McDonald's New York Metro Foosball Youth Series 2026 recap
Corporate partnership that empowers students and unites communities.
McDonald's New York Metro partnered with Foosball Clubs USA and gave students something to belong to. Eight free tournaments in eight cities, $8,000 in educational grants, and tables that stayed in the community after the last whistle. Here is the whole series, start to finish.
The series by the numbers
Eight qualifiers and one Championship Final
Across New York and New Jersey
Grades 7 through 12, free to enter
Awarded to the top three finishers
Eight months of planning. Four weeks of events. One champion.
Championship Final
Friday, July 17, 2026 at McDonald's, 966 3rd Ave, Manhattan
Eight qualifier winners, one single elimination bracket, and $8,000 in educational grants on the line. We use first names only to protect their privacy.
Christian
Brooklyn (NY)
$2,000
Angel
Manhattan (NY)
$5,000
Daniel
Hicksville (NY)
$1,000
Educational grants awarded. All three also took home an Xbox and a $100 McDonald's Arch Card.
4th Adrian, Jersey City (NJ)
Tied 5th Alex, Belleville (NJ) · Sehrish, Paterson (NJ) · Jaelen, Bronx (NY) · Zoe, Manasquan (NJ)
Every finalist earned their seat at a qualifier and took home a trophy. The city is the qualifier they came out of.
The Road to the Championship
Seven matches on two tables. Here is how the day played out.
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
Final
Champion
Angel
Every match was best two of three games to five. Winners are highlighted.
Brackets, pairings, and live scoring were run on FOOSAPP, the official software partner of the series.
Where the grant money went
The Foosball Clubs USA Educational Grant is not a cash prize. Each award is paid toward qualified education expenses at the student's school, from books and supplies to technology, activity fees, and college costs. The goal is simple. Take a financial barrier off a student who earned it.
Every Qualifier, Every Podium
Eight stops at McDonald's restaurants across New York and New Jersey. Here is the top three at every one of them.
Qualifier 1, Manhattan
Saturday, June 20, 2026
966 3rd Avenue, New York, NY
- 1stAngelTo the final
- 2ndChristian
- 3rdBryan
Qualifier 2, Belleville
Sunday, June 21, 2026
663 Washington Avenue, Belleville, NJ
- 1stRafael
- 2ndAlexTo the final
- 3rdSabrina
Qualifier 3, Hicksville
Saturday, June 27, 2026
280 N Broadway, Hicksville, NY
- 1stDanielTo the final
- 2ndSean
- 3rdParneet
Qualifier 4, Paterson
Sunday, June 28, 2026
485–497 Broadway, Paterson, NJ
- 1stSehrishTo the final
- 2ndAhjoure
- 3rdSteve
Qualifier 5, the Bronx
Friday, July 10, 2026
85 Bruckner Boulevard, Bronx, NY
- 1stJaelenTo the final
- 2ndJoaquin
- 3rdMiguelangel
Qualifier 6, Jersey City
Saturday, July 11, 2026
737 Secaucus Road, Jersey City, NJ
- 1stAdrianTo the final
- 2ndQadeer
- 3rdChristian
Qualifier 7, Brooklyn
Sunday, July 12, 2026
741 Grand Street, Brooklyn, NY
- 1stAngel
- 2ndChristianTo the final
- 3rdZoe
Qualifier 8, Manasquan
Monday, July 13, 2026
2428 NJ-35, Manasquan, NJ 08736
- 1stZoeTo the final
- 2ndRobert
- 3rdLuka
Angel won both Manhattan and Brooklyn, so the Brooklyn seat passed to Christian. Rafael won Belleville and Alex took that seat at the final.
The Full Route
Manhattan, Belleville, Hicksville, Paterson, the Bronx, Jersey City, Brooklyn, and Manasquan. Then back to Manhattan for the final. Click a pin to see the stop.
How It Worked
Every qualifier was free, open to grades 7 through 12, and finished in about three hours. No experience was required, and plenty of players picked up a rod for the first time that day.
The Qualifiers
Per Qualifier
Each qualifying event held up to 32 players from the New York Metro area, and entry was free.
Monster DYP Format
Every qualifier ran a Monster Draw Your Partner tournament across three or more rounds of play.
A New One Every Round
In a DYP, players were randomly paired with a different partner each round. Individual stats ran on a live leaderboard all day.
Start to Finish
The full qualifier wrapped in about three hours. The top ranked player on the leaderboard advanced to the Championship Final.
The eight qualifier winners were randomly drawn into a single elimination bracket at the Championship Final. Winners moved through the Quarterfinals and Semifinals until one champion was crowned, and the top three finishers earned the grants.
The draw and every final match happened on July 17, 2026 at McDonald's, 966 3rd Ave, New York, NY. The full bracket is up above.
From the series
The Rules
How It Worked
Why Foosball?
Foosball is closely connected to soccer, but what makes it special is that it is easy to play, social, and incredibly engaging.
At the same time, it helps young people build skills like strategic thinking, focus, and hand eye coordination, all while having fun competing with their peers.
That is what nine event days looked like. Kids who had never met were partners by round two.
Strategic Thinking
Plan moves ahead and outsmart opponents
Focus & Concentration
Train your mind to stay sharp under pressure
Teamwork
Build communication and sportsmanship skills
Quick Decision-Making
React fast and adapt to changing situations
World champions showed up and played
Some of the best players in the sport came out during the series and played alongside the kids. They did not stand off to the side. They coached, they joked, and they poured into the next generation. That is how you pass something down.
The Tables Stayed
When the series ended, McDonald's donated the foosball tables used during the tournaments to youth organizations around the region. The events lasted four weeks. The tables are still there.
A Special Thank You
This series does not happen without these two.
McDonald's New York Metro
They opened eight restaurants to a room full of kids, funded every educational grant, and donated the tables to New York Metro youth organizations when the series ended. They backed this before there was any proof it would work.
United States Table Soccer Organization
USTSO brought the New York City foosball community with them. Their people ran the tables, kept the matches honest, and made sure a first time player got the same respect as a champion.
Presented By
Your Name On Something That Matters
McDonald's put its name on eight free events, and parents thanked them for it. That is what this partnership does. Students get a place to belong, your brand gets real community goodwill, and the tables stay behind when the cameras leave.
Foosball Clubs USA builds the whole thing. Venues, equipment, staffing, brackets, prizes, waivers, and press. Your team shows up to a finished event.
Michael Stahl, Executive Director. One short call is all it takes to find out what this would look like in your market.
Are you a school instead? Nominate your school for free tables.