I'm not going out on any sort of limb by saying the overarching cultural theme for 2026 will be international sports.
North America and Europe are having a bit of a cultural exchange at the moment.
Obviously, across North America the talk is about the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup, the largest in the event's long history. It's fair to say European teams are more likely to succeed at the sport we call soccer than our own.
Then, across the pond in Milan, the 2026 Winter Olympics are soon to be underway, highlighted — at least in my mind — by the hockey tournament in which the U.S. and Canada are heavy favorites. Don't sleep on an incredibly stacked Swedish team, though.
The question then becomes: Will this exporting of our cultural sporting obsessions result in a corresponding exporting of travelers? To some extent the answer has to be yes, but maybe not to the level some hoteliers are hoping.
During the recent Americas Lodging Investment Summit in Los Angeles, I made World Cup expectations a bit of a common question for hoteliers when I sat down for interviews. With cities across the U.S., Canada and Mexico preparing — and more importantly budgeting — for a big influx of soccer-loving international travelers, I think it's fair to question whether the event can really live up to the billing of "10 Super Bowls" in terms of hotel demand.
I got a range of responses, but the general consensus was that success is in the eye of the beholder when it comes to World Cup travel demand. It will clearly lead to increases in year-over-year comparison, but if you're budgeting for skyrocketing demand, you're probably setting yourself up for failure.
One of the more interesting comments I picked up on came from Hotel Equities CEO Ben Rafter, who worried we might be reaching a point where hype is exceeding reality.
With "international travel, who knows," he said in the soon-to-be-published interview. "The administration has wanted to make this a great spectacle. At some point, I hope that emerges. Where are we making it a great spectacle?"
Across the Atlantic, I feel like it's easier to have confidence in travelers heading from North America to Europe because we've already had no shortage of that post-pandemic. Even if U.S. tourists aren't heading to Italy's second-most populous city, they're finding excuses to travel across the European continent.
And a recent STR analysis highlighted how limited supply growth creates the basis for strong hotel performance in Milan before, during and after the Winter Olympics.
And it might not be 10 Super Bowls worth of performance, but our one actual Super Bowl here in the U.S. — kicking off on Sunday in Santa Clara, California — is poised to be a pretty significant revenue driver for hotels. That's not necessarily an international sport, although NFL officials would love to change that perception.
Let me know what you think on LinkedIn or via email — especially if you have suggestions for a theme for the year.
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