Hundreds of fans pack American Dream mall to watch World Cup final

Hundreds of fans packed the American Dream mall on Sunday to watch the World Cup final between Argentina and Spain on a big screen and inside restaurants.

For many who weren't lucky -- or wealthy -- enough to get a ticket, they said the best place to watch the final was inside the nearby mall, where hundreds gathered.

"I'm excited because it's like the final and I've been liking [Lionel] Messi a lot," said Argentina fan Adrian Garcia, who was spotted dribbling a soccer ball.

Messi has been the big star in the New York-New Jersey region, even with Polish fans.

"As for Messi, this is probably the last World Cup for him, so I am a fan of him," Lucas Szimnaiuk said.

Traffic, like ticket prices, was mighty

Fans said they got to the mall early.

"Oh my god, there was so much traffic. We came from Washington D.C. all the way to here," Spain fan Ali Elrayah said.

While Elrayah parked at the mall for a hefty price, Grace Sow's parents bought her a pricey ticket to the final.

"We actually took an Uber and just walked because there's a lot of traffic," the Spain supporter said.

An Argentina fan with his family on the roof of the mall tried at the last minute to get his hands on a ticket.

"I was trying to catch the lowest price, but couldn't get any luck," he said, adding the lowest price he saw was $6,200. "I think it's too expensive. They don't make it easy for people to buy it."

Heightened security in place getting into MetLife

Security was tight going into MetLife Stadium from the mall.

In one layer, New Jersey State Police were at the entrance of the walkway that takes fans to MetLife, where President Trump was in attendance after making the trip aboard Marine One.

"We're always monitoring the dark web to make sure we had as much intelligence as possible," New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill said.