ARLINGTON, Virginia—The recently revised U.S. hotel forecast from CoStar and Tourism Economics projected a 1.7 percent increase in revenue per available room (RevPAR) during the World Cup months of June and July. While the anticipated lift was modest, it would represent a meaningful contribution to overall industry growth in 2026.
Overall, for 2026, the industry is forecast to increase RevPAR by 0.6 percent, after a 0.3 percent decline in 2025. Without that World Cup-driven gain, RevPAR growth would be 40 basis points lower at 0.2 percent.
During the last U.S. World Cup in 1994, RevPAR for June and July rose 6.9 percent, largely on a 5.0 percent increase in average daily rate. The top-line growth around this year’s World Cup will be almost entirely on a 1.6 percent lift in ADR.
“Our forecast is tempered due to the uncertainty surrounding international inbound travel, which fell in 2025 due to policy and perception changes,” said Isaac Collazo, STR’s senior director, analytics. “Still, a 1.7 increase would be noticeably better than the months before (down 0.4 percent) and after (up 1.0 percent) the World Cup.”
Key Cities Impacted by World Cup
Ten of the 11 U.S. host cities for the World Cup are included in STR’s Top 25 Markets, underscoring the event’s concentration in the country’s largest hotel markets. On average, those host markets are expected to see a RevPAR gain of 3.8 percent for the year and 12.7 percent in June/July. For comparison, in 1994, host cities collectively saw June/July RevPAR rise 11.9 percent. Without the World Cup, 2026 host markets would be forecast for just 2.0 percent growth in RevPAR.
“While there is upside for the host markets, the impact to the total U.S. average is negligible due to the underlying weakness expected elsewhere,” Collazo said.
Forward-booking data shows an uptick in occupancy on the books beginning on the day of the first U.S. match (June 12, 2026) and remaining elevated through July 4. After the holiday, occupancy levels revert to the softer pace observed in the days leading up to the tournament’s start.
