Travel related to the FIFA World Cup is helping to drive up airfares in host cities, though lodging demand in the U.S. has been trailing expectations, according to data published this week by American Express Global Business Travel.
Amex GBT's Business Travel Pulse for June, which is based on the travel management company's data and expert analysis, showed that airfares to World Cup host cities are seeing "sharp increases," compared with "moderately climbing" airfares to non-host cities. On domestic flights, those increases averaged 42 percent year over year, and routes from Europe to host cities were up an average of 13 percent, the report indicated.
However, Amex GBT noted that more than half of hotel owners in host cities are seeing demand below both forecasts for the major sporting event and typical booking patterns for June and July. Even so, the report said contracted rates from the 2026 sourcing season already were up in host cities, mostly sharply in Toronto, up 4.8 percent year over year.
"We expect rates to continue climbing throughout the tournament and closer to match days," Amex GBT said in the report. "Monitor this and re-enter conversations with hotels in cities with a slump in demand."
The report said in the first quarter, overall business travel prices were up 8.3 percent year over year, driven largely by increased jet fuel prices. By comparison, prices were up 4.7 percent year over year in the fourth quarter of 2025 and up 4.5 percent in the third quarter.