{"id":865558,"date":"2026-06-13T23:56:20","date_gmt":"2026-06-13T23:56:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/865558\/"},"modified":"2026-06-13T23:56:20","modified_gmt":"2026-06-13T23:56:20","slug":"walking-dead-drug-zombies-in-philly-neighborhood-minutes-from-world-cup-stadium","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/865558\/","title":{"rendered":"Walking dead! Drug ‘zombies’ in Philly neighborhood minutes from World Cup stadium"},"content":{"rendered":"

As thousands of soccer fans pour into Philadelphia Stadium<\/a> for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the City of Brotherly Love has a rare opportunity to showcase itself on the world\u2019s biggest stage \u2014 but one neighborhood\u2019s drug-ravaged streets are only a short drive away<\/p>\n

Beyond the exciting tourist attractions \u2014 the Liberty Bell, the Museum of the American Revolution and the famous Philadelphia cheesesteak \u2014 some visitors may also encounter one of the city\u2019s most visible crises: the open-air drug market in the Kensington neighborhood, where addiction has ravaged<\/a> the streets for years.<\/p>\n

The spot has become widely known for hordes of drug-addled individuals<\/a> \u2014 many of them sprawled barefoot on the filthy ground, or slumped over.<\/p>\n

Many of the drug abusers openly inject drugs into their hands, arms and necks. Anadolu Agency via Getty Images<\/p>\n

The drug crisis has left users covered in wounds and staring off into space as they sit and wait for their next fix. <\/p>\n

Many openly inject drugs into their hands, arms and necks.<\/p>\n

For years, the neighborhood has been heavily plagued by xylazine<\/a>, a veterinary sedative commonly known as \u201ctranq\u201d when mixed with illegal drugs such as fentanyl.<\/p>\n

Health officials and law enforcement agencies have warned that the combination creates serious risks, including prolonged sedation, severe wounds and an increased likelihood of overdose.<\/p>\n

Many of the drug abusers take on a \u201czombie\u201d like appearance. Anadolu via Getty Images<\/p>\n

More recently, public-health authorities have warned that another veterinary sedative, medetomidine, has begun appearing in the city\u2019s illicit drug supply.<\/p>\n

Experts say the substance may be substantially more potent than xylazine and could further complicate treatment and overdose-response efforts.<\/p>\n

The drug problems in Kensington have been going on in Philadelphia for years. Anadolu Agency via Getty Images<\/p>\n

As World Cup visitors arrive in Philadelphia, many will experience the city\u2019s rich history, diverse neighborhoods, and passionate sports culture.<\/p>\n

Yet the tournament may also bring renewed attention to the very visible, human toll of addiction.<\/p>\n

Philadelphia City Hall can be seen behind the FIFA World Cup flag. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n

The Philadelphia matches will be played at Lincoln Financial Field, the home of the Eagles, which will host five group-stage\u00a0games before a Round of 16 clash on July 4.<\/p>\n

C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire and Ecuador will play there on June 14, followed by Brazil vs Haiti on June 19.<\/p>\n

France will face Iraq on June 22, Cura\u00e7ao will play C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire on June 25, and Croatia will take on Ghana on June 27.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As thousands of soccer fans pour into Philadelphia Stadium for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the City of…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":865559,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5132],"tags":[1556,5229,1230,2034,1448,2830,1311,58724,5268,67,586,132,5230,68,1154,2969,105860,55],"class_list":["post-865558","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-philadelphia","tag-addiction","tag-america","tag-drugs","tag-fifa","tag-pa","tag-pennsylvania","tag-philadelphia","tag-the-walking-dead","tag-tourists","tag-united-states","tag-united-states-of-america","tag-unitedstates","tag-unitedstatesofamerica","tag-us","tag-us-news","tag-usa","tag-world-cup-2026","tag-zombies"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116745508344984240","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/865558","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=865558"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/865558\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/865559"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=865558"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=865558"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=865558"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}