Many in the art world might be surprised to learn that one of the last projects the legendary art collector and philanthropist Agnes Gund worked on before her death involved the 2026 FIFA World Cup, hosted this year in North America. The project, Art of the Game, involved commissioning 23 contemporary artists—mostly nominated by high-profile museum curators—to design large-scale soccer ball sculptures celebrating the 23rd World Cup, which will be installed all summer long, and perhaps longer, around New York and New Jersey.

Art of the Game is organized by the ARTS 14C, a nonprofit based in Jersey City, New Jersey, and the NYNJ Host Committee. Diana Burroughs, executive director of ARTS 14C’s residency program, and Gund were friends for over four decades and shared a love of sports. ‘I knew I would not have to convince [Gund] of the idea’s merits,’ Burroughs said in a statement about the project.

The first artist Gund reached out to was Katherine Bernhardt; her soccer ball is installed in Rockefeller Plaza, in front of Christie’s headquarters in midtown Manhattan. Many others followed, among them Futura 2000 (nominated by Brooklyn Museum director Ann Pasternak), Edgar Heap of Birds (nominated by recently retired MoMA director Glenn Lowry), and Taína H. Cruz (nominated by Whitney Museum director Scott Rothkopf).

The sculptures were fabricated at Powerhouse Arts in Brooklyn and assembled at Mana Contemporary in Jersey City. They will be on view in various parks, plazas, and other public spaces through at least Labor Day, with the hope that many will remain on public view long term.