Barely two weeks remain before the first World Cup match kicks off, but the hotel industry and Airbnb hosts report dramatically lower sales than expected. Now Donald Trump is pointed to as an important reason for the weak interest.
“They sold us something really big, but we don’t see the numbers yet,” says a hotel player in Houston.
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While US leaders have long talked about the World Cup as a huge economic opportunity, recent figures show that the reality looks different. According to a survey by the American Hotel and Lodging Association (AHLA), nearly 80 percent of hotels in the 11 host cities say bookings are below their original forecasts. Some describe the tournament as almost a “non-event”.
On Sporten.com’s live service, you can follow the matches that start on June 11th.
“We didn’t see it coming”
The Los Angeles Times writes this week what many have thought, but fewer have said out loud: The World Cup hotel market in the United States is performing poorly, and the tournament is in danger. The newspaper points directly to Donald Trump as an important reason.
“People didn’t forget that the biggest sporting event on earth was going to take place. The problem is Trump’s immigration policy, the travel climate and his international reputation, the newspaper writes.
Several factors are highlighted: aggressive immigration enforcement, visa insecurity, travel warnings, and concerns about ICE activity near host cities and extreme pricing. In addition, Trump has threatened to stop international flights to cities such as Chicago, New York and Los Angeles if local authorities do not cooperate on extraditions.
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Protests and fear of ICE
In Los Angeles – one of the most important host cities – the Unite Local 11 union, which represents about 2,000 employees in the hospitality industry, has started a protest. They demand formal guarantees that the Immigration and Customs Authorities (ICE) will be banned from all World Cup matches at SoFi Stadium.
“An active ICE presence inside the stadium will create a climate of fear for both staff and participants,” the union says.
“I have my documents with me from day one. They always accompany me, just in case something happens. The stress becomes too much,” says one worker.
FIFA’s ticket mess under investigation
At the same time, New York and New Jersey have opened an investigation into FIFA’s ticketing practices. The reason is complaints about skyrocketing prices, dynamic pricing and problems with reselling. Official World Cup tickets have gone for over 11,000 dollars, and resale prices have reached as high as two million dollars.
“FIFA wanted to run this championship as a premium global market with dynamic pricing and luxurious hospitality. But you can’t exploit fans without investigation, New York’s justice authorities say.
The contrast with New York’s mayor
While the Trump administration is accused of creating an unfriendly and expensive travel climate, New York Mayor Zoran Mamdani has taken matters into his own hands. He has secured a thousand affordable World Cup tickets at $50 per seat – including free round-trip bus to MetLife Stadium and free viewing events throughout the city.
“We said that we would fight for cheaper tickets for New Yorkers. Today, I am proud to announce that we made it happen,” said Mamdani.
“I’ve dreamed for years of this moment, but as mayor, I think of the enormous economic opportunity – the billions of dollars – and the responsibility we have to ensure that this opportunity extends far beyond the typical tourist areas, and into the beauty and breadth of all five boroughs.
“Trump is failing as a host”
According to a report by Oxford Economics, some GDP growth is expected in the host cities this summer, mainly concentrated in the leisure and hotel industries. But the growth will have no material impact on the country’s total jobs and economic gains for the year.
While Trump poses for VIP boxes and photo opportunities, Mamdani does something practical: he makes the World Cup accessible to the people.
“This is what leadership looks like at ground level. He is the radical socialist who makes the World Cup more accessible in one of America’s largest cities – not Trump, commentators write.
The World Cup will project stability, confidence, openness and competence. But under Trump, the picture that emerges is one of fear, high costs, legal battles, ICE worries and hotel anxiety. Fans around the world are now considering whether America is even worth the trouble.
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