Most New Jersey sport fans probably care more about the Knicks than the World Cup.

That's just reality. And the schedule is not helping. The first World Cup match at "NYNJ Stadium" on Saturday coincides possibly with the Knicks winning the NBA championship later that evening.

It's not hard to see which event is going to grab the most attention of average sport fans in the region. It's unlikely to be Brazil vs. Morocco.

All this moves into the political arena, because of the pressure on the state to make sure World Cup matches go smoothly.

It's hard to forget that when the Super Bowl was played at MetLife (the stadium's real name) in 2014, there were massive problems with fans leaving the venue via NJ Transit.

Much of the state's preparation for the World Cup has centered around making sure that does not happen again.

"We're so excited to get this kicked off," Mikie Sherrill said Friday morning in a TV appearance.

She said NJ Transit is ready and that there are ferry boats if needed to get visitors staying in Manhattan across the river.

The Sherrill Administration has promoted various aspects of the World Cup since assuming office in January - from watch parties to encouraging visitors to patronize local businesses.

The new Administration, of course, inherited this event.

Bringing World Cup matches - and the July 19 final - to New Jersey was orchestrated by Phil Murphy, who is a big soccer fan. But Murphy is out of office and it is Sherrill's responsibility to execute the plan.

And to drum up excitement.

In recent weeks, Sherrill has said that so many youngsters these days play soccer while growing up.

Dale Caldwell, the lieutenant governor, has talked about the World Cup being "exponentially bigger" than the Super Bowl.

Both those comments are right as far as they go.

Kids do play soccer and soccer is the most popular sport on the planet. But not in the United States.

While polls are not necessarily 100 percent accurate 100 percent of the time, a recent Emerson Poll found that a mere 22 percent of respondents are "very interested" in the World Cup. It did find that younger people are more interested than older Americans, which brings us  back to kids playing soccer while in middle school.

The Independent, a British news site, called the poll "alarming."

Not really. "Football," or soccer, has never been universally popular in the U.S. and that is unlikely to change.

Sherrill said on TV Friday that a third of the world's population will watch the final match. Projections like that are hard to truly measure, but it will be surprising if a third of the people in New Jersey will watch.

Nonetheless, there is still pressure on the administration to make sure all goes well in East Rutherford.

Back to the Knicks. If they lose tomorrow, Game Six will be next Tuesday, June 16. That will also coincide with the World Cup match in NJ between France and Senegal. Just saying.