US Host Cities Bucking Trend of Underwhelming World Cup Boost

The cities hosting games at the 2026 FIFA World Cup continue to reap significant economic rewards for their participation, challenging fears and evidence from past competitions that the tournament would deliver an underwhelming boost.

According to a new report from the Bank of America Institute, consumer spending across the 16 cities hosting matches at this year's World Cup-11 in the U. S.-increased 5.4 percent year-over-year for the June 10-June 28 period. Much of this has come from fans traveling to the cities for the games, with nonlocal spending up 17.4 percent.

Fears Over an Underwhelming World Cup

Organizers anticipated the 2026 competition to make a significant contribution to the global economy and to the nations hosting it in particular. In a joint study with the World Trade Organization (WTO) published last March, FIFA forecast that the tournament would generate $80.1 billion in gross economic impact, with $30.5 billion of this going toward the U.S. alongside the creation of around 185,000 jobs.

But in the run-up to the tournament, many businesses-including those in host cities-said that the event was falling short of these expectations. Many hotels reported lower-than-forecast demand and thousands of tickets remained unsold amid concerns over high prices and travel difficulties for international fans.

Vijay Dandapani, president and CEO of the Hotel Association of New York City, told Newsweek in May that the city's hotels had anticipated an additional 1.2 million international visitors during the competition, but that bookings were up by only “a maximum of 10 percent year-on-year” and that nearly half had “seen no business thus far.”

He added that the city's hotels expected to miss out on over $100 million in anticipated room revenue, appearing to confirm what past research had shown about the relative benefits of hosting.

According to the University of Toronto, the cost of hosting resulted in a net economic loss for host cities in 12 out of the last 14 world cups.

A separate report from the insurance firm Atradius found that host cities in the 1994 competition-the last one held in the U. S.-together incurred a total loss of up to $9.3 billion.

Host Cities Continue To Benefit

While analysts will not be able to determine whether cities have profited or suffered from hosting the 78 games taking place in the U. S.-including the July 19 final-until after the competition concludes, recent data indicates that they are so far benefiting from the tournament.

Bank of America tracked card-based purchases across all host cities to reveal the sizable increase in consumer spending, and the group notes a particular lift during host-team matches.

“During the group stage, Team USA played in Seattle and Los Angeles, winning two of their three matches,” the report read. “In spending terms, those cities also notched wins, with overall spending rising 5.0 percent and 6.8 percent, respectively, over the first stage of the tournament.”

And other data has revealed a surge in demand for short-term rentals across host cities and those within commuting distance of the games.

In mid-June, cities like Dallas, Texas and Kansas City, Missouri were seeing matchday demand spike for bookings on sites like Airbnb and Vrbo compared to a year prior, according to data from AirDNA, an analytics platform focused on the short‑term rental market.

However, in its latest report, AirDNA said that the increased number of available properties meant this demand has not automatically translated into a significant boost to occupancy rates.

“Demand has remained strongest in supply-constrained markets, while rapid listing growth has limited occupancy gains across much of North America,” Linda Rollins, a senior research analyst at AirDNA, wrote on Thursday. “As the knockout rounds begin, attention will shift toward a smaller number of marquee matches where booking activity, pricing, and last-minute demand are expected to intensify.”

2026 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.

This story was originally published July 3, 2026 at 9:16 AM.