Map Shows Cities Seeing Biggest Booking Boost From FIFA World Cup

Analysis of short‑term rental bookings shows that the 2026 FIFA World Cup is already producing clear winners and losers, with some host cities seeing a surge in demand while others experience little more than business as usual.

According to data from AirDNA, an analytics platform focused on the short‑term rental market, cities hosting World Cup games, such as Dallas, have seen matchday demand spike for bookings on sites like Airbnb and Vrbo compared with last year’s baseline. But others, notably New York, have seen muted, if not below-average, interest in their properties.

Which Cities Are Seeing the Biggest Boost?

AirDNA has been monitoring short-term rental bookings across host and feeder cities, providing weekly snapshots of demand in the lead-up to and on matchdays.

While some of the fixtures are days or weeks away, and businesses have noted that last-minute bookings are becoming common during this competition, averaging year-over-year changes in demand for these cities on matchdays provides an indication of how they are performing in attracting fans.

Kansas City-hosting a total of four group-stage games as well as two knockouts-has seen the biggest surge in short-term rentals. Booking demand has risen by an average of 49 percent compared to the same period last year, with the June 16 match between Argentina and Algeria resulting in an 83-percent lift on that day.

In Texas, Dallas and Fort Worth have seen demand surge by an average of 27 percent and 45 percent, respectively. And Miami has also experienced a 40 percent jump year-over-year, reflecting what AirDNA said was a pattern among already popular destinations.

"Some host cities are more expensive year-round or attract more tourism even outside major events," the website reads. "Others have historically lower demand or more available supply. The World Cup is likely to amplify these existing differences, resulting in higher peaks in some markets than others."

But New York-among the most popular destinations in the world-has seen demand drop by nearly 5 percent year-over-year on matchdays, even as the city serves as one of the main hubs for games being played at New York New Jersey Stadium.

In May, Vijay Dandapani, president and CEO of the Hotel Association of New York City, told Newsweek that hotel booking rates were tracking below expectations, and said that the city's hoteliers expect to miss out on more than $100 million in anticipated room revenue as a result.

How High Is Demand for the World Cup?

"The FIFA World Cup will be the biggest hosting event in Airbnb's history," the company told Newsweek in a statement, while noting its recent forecast that "hundreds of thousands more guests" are set to book through its website compared to their previous biggest event: The 2024 Paris Olympics.

"For the week ending June 7, we saw the biggest weekly surge in searches for tournament-time stays on Airbnb this year," it added, noting the high level of last-minute bookings, which it said reflected the "nature of the event, as teams advance to further rounds and fans then book trips to attend."

But other signs of muted demand continue to emerge as the competition enters its second week, including empty seats at certain group-stage games.

"Demand for the World Cup has certainly been mixed so far," said Stephen Shapiro, chair of South Carolina's Department of Sport and Entertainment Management. "Some premier matches are drawing significant crowds, but there is some evidence overall demand may have been overestimated."

Shapiro told Newsweek that ticket prices, which remain "hard for many fans to afford,” could be to blame for the "spotty attendance," alongside the expanded 48-nation format for this year's tournament.

"FIFA and future host countries must consider the impact of outpricing certain segments of the fan base," he said, "as this can impact long term interest in the sport and limit the growth of young fans who might have the opportunity to watch this great event in person for the first time."

However, he acknowledged that overall attendance appears strong compared to past tournaments, and in other respects, the 2026 World Cup is already shaping up to be a success. Rising resale prices have been viewed as evidence of growing demand, and fans have so far witnessed a higher per-game average of goals than at any other World Cup.

“The FIFA World Cup thus far has been phenomenal. It’s easy to see why prices are surging…Fans are enthusiastic, passionate, and full of life,” Scott Friedman, host of the show Ticket Talk, posted to X this week.

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This story was originally published June 19, 2026 at 7:35 AM.