NEW YORK, June 20 — The 2026 World Cup is showing a mixed tourism and hospitality picture across host cities, with early expectations of a major economic windfall increasingly tempered by weaker-than-expected demand.
In an article today, The New York Times (NYT) reported on the mismatch between consumer demand and the hospitality expectations on one of the biggest sporting events internationally.
In Vancouver, Alberta accountant Julie Rahaman nearly abandoned plans to attend after hotel rates spiked to as high as US$1,000 (RM4,138) a night.
“It gets to a point where it just feels ridiculous,” she was quoted as saying.
She briefly considered skipping the match and selling her tickets after being priced out of accommodation.
She later found hotel rates falling sharply in May and rebooked a room for about US$285 (RM1,179) a night.
According to the NYT, the volatility highlights how sharply pricing expectations around the tournament have shifted in recent months.
Fifa had forecast more than six million fans and an estimated US$80 billion (RM331.06 billion) global economic impact.
Hospitality data now suggests that outcome is uneven across host cities.
In New York, hotel industry leaders say revenue growth tied to the tournament has fallen far short of projections.
“Hugely disappointing and underwhelming,” Vijay Dandapani, chief executive of the Hotel Association of New York City, was quoted as saying.
CoStar data shows bookings in some major cities, including New York, Toronto and Miami, are lower than a year earlier on match days.
Hotels initially raised prices by as much as 500 per cent in anticipation of peak demand but rates have since dropped from those highs as bookings failed to keep pace, the NYT reported.
In Vancouver and Monterrey, price corrections have been particularly steep, the NYT wrote, citing data from Lighthouse Intelligence.
A Mexican fan kisses a World Cup replica ahead of the arrival of Mexico's players at the Hilton Guadalajara Midtown Hotel during the 2026 World Cup football tournament in Guadalajara, Mexico on June 16, 2026. Hotel districts in major World Cup host cities are seeing uneven demand as early pricing bets by the hospitality sector fail to fully materialise. — AFP pic International travel trends are also softer than expected.
Flight bookings from the European Union to several host cities in the Americas have declined compared with last year, the NYT said citing aviation data firm Cirium.
Travel to New York’s JFK Airport is down more than 15 per cent year-on-year, while San Francisco International Airport is down nearly 10 per cent.
Fifa had estimated that 40 per cent of visitors would be international arrivals.
But, the NYT noted that some cities are outperforming expectation.
Kansas City has seen hotel bookings rise 32 per cent compared with the same period last year, according to Visit Kansas City.
Short-term rentals have also doubled revenue projections, supported by strong demand around matches featuring high-profile teams.
But even there, stays are shorter and demand is uneven between fixtures.
Hotel associations in other cities say Fifa’s large room block reservations created an inflated early signal of demand that later unwound as bookings softened.
The association said this “artificial early demand signal” distorted pricing expectations across parts of the sector.
Some industry experts say the overall outlook is still positive compared with last year, but far below initial forecasts.
“I would advise the soccer overlords to seriously consider what they’re doing to fans with these ticket and hotel pricing practices,” Tom Boyer, a father of two boys who booked a non-refundable Marriott room in early April in Vancouver to catch two World Cup games there.
“The game is supposed to bring people together. These types of practices don’t,” he added.
