If you were considering holding a meeting in Boston this coming June, you would be well advised to book now.
That’s because FIFA released its World Cup soccer schedule on December 5, and with either England or Scotland playing games in the city on June 13, 19 and 23, online searches for Boston hotels for June are up 1,000% in the past week, according to Expedia.
But that’s not nearly the end of the headache for planners with early-summer events in the works. The 12 other World Cup host cities in the U.S. and Canada—Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Kansas City, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle, Toronto and Vancouver—have seen 250% to 900% more online hotel searches for June.
Even if these 13 cities are not being considered by a meeting group, the strong consumer demand for those will likely bring about higher hotel rates in other cities, which will absorb group business that’s staying away from the World Cup cities.
The lessons here: Try to book June 2026 meetings right now or move those meetings to May or July, or look to smaller cities as potential hosts.
