Downtown San Jose World Cup watch parties moved for upcoming Mexico, Brazil matches

Anticipating large turnout, San Jose city officials said World Cup watch parties for Sunday’s Round of 16 matches in the city’s downtown have been moved out of San Pedro Square.

Officials announced that the watch parties are being moved to Discovery Meadow and the SAP Center. Restaurants and bars in San Pedro Square will remain open.

“We’re showing the rest of the country what it means to be a soccer city,” Mayor Matt Mahan said in a statement. “On the eve of historic matchups between Mexico and England, and Brazil and Norway, we’re opening larger venues where fans and families can come together and celebrate safely.”

Discovery Meadow will show both the Brazil vs. Norway match and the Mexico vs. England match, while the SAP Center will show Mexico vs. England. Officials said tickets are required to attend.

“Our teams across the City, and our partners, moved quickly to stand up two larger venues in a matter of days. That’s what San José does — we deliver for our community,” said assistant city manager Lee Wilcox.

The announcement of new venues comes as the watch parties at San Pedro Square have drawn large crowds to downtown since the start of the World Cup. Officials said 400,000 people have attended celebrations at the square.

Recent celebrations have been marred by violence in the area. On Sunday, one person was killed and another was injured in a shooting a block away from the square.

Two days later, a celebration following Mexico’s victory over Ecuador became unruly, as two people were stabbed and multiple fights occurred. Several people were arrested.

Brazil vs. Norway is scheduled to kick off at 1 p.m., while Mexico vs. England is scheduled to kick off at 5 p.m.

Officials said parties at San Pedro Square will resume on Monday, as Portugal faces Spain and the United States faces Belgium in their Round of 16 matches.

Tickets for Sunday’s watch parties are scheduled to be available at 10 a.m. Friday.