Foreign soccer fans ditch FIFA World Cup, threatening ‘$30B’ economic boom for the US
Foreign soccer fans are boycotting the 2026 World Cup in droves, threatening to blunt the economic boost US hotels and host cities were counting on, an industry report warned on Monday.
Nearly 80% of hotel operators in nine of the 11 American host cities said reservations are running well behind early projections: even though more than 5 million tickets have already been sold, according to the American Hotel & Lodging Association’s US Hotel Outlook Report.
FIFA canceled or released about 70% of its massive room blocks, flooding the market and triggering cancellations of up to 95% of contracted inventory in some cities.
Visa delays, concerns about how they would be treated by immigration officials, soaring airfares, a strong US dollar, and geopolitical tensions have kept international travelers home, the AHLA said.