Several U.S. hotels are drastically cutting room rates this summer during the World Cup. Inflation and anti-American sentiment are causing soccer fans to scale back their travel plans.
The Financial Times reported on Tuesday that, according to data analysis firm Lighthouse Intelligence, room rates in World Cup host cities like Atlanta, Dallas, Miami, Philadelphia, and San Francisco have plummeted by about a third from their peak earlier this year.
Scott Yesner, founder of Philadelphia-based short-term rental and boutique hotel management company Bespoke Stay, said many hotels are panicking and slashing rates.
Initially, the hotel industry was buzzing with optimism that the World Cup, co-hosted by the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, would help reverse the post-pandemic tourism slump.
The International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) President Gianni Infantino predicted that hundreds of thousands of visitors would flock to the 2024 World Cup host cities, including lucky ticket holders and many more seeking a unique experience.
However, Vijay Dandapani, president of the New York City Hotel Association, hasn’t seen a significant uptick in tourists yet. He argues that while demand might increase somewhat, it’s unlikely to match FIFA’s rosy projections.
Lior Sekler, Chief Commercial Officer of hotel management firm HRI Hospitality, observed that the expected surge in crowds to host cities and surrounding areas hasn’t materialized at all.
He added that the desire to visit the U.S. has waned, citing dissatisfaction with the Trump administration’s hardline immigration policies and instability sparked by the Iran conflict as reasons for the cooled international demand.
Rosanna Maietta, president of the American Hotel and Lodging Association (AHLA), revealed that despite over 2 million tickets sold, this hasn’t translated into the typical hotel bookings expected for an event of this scale.
Aran Ryan, head of industry research at Tourism Economics, expects a slight uptick but notes that concerns about ticket prices, border crossing issues, and anti-American sentiment, exacerbated by the Iran conflict, remain significant hurdles.
Tourism Economics has downgraded its growth forecast for foreign visitors to the U.S. this year from 3.9% to 3.4% since December.
Football Supporters Europe, a soccer fan organization, estimates that attending every match from the World Cup’s opening game to the final will cost a minimum of 6,900 USD for tickets alone. This is nearly five times the ticket prices for the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
The tournament, jointly hosted by the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, is scheduled to kick off on June 11 and conclude on July 19, with the U.S. hosting 78 matches across 11 cities.