Modest World Cup lift still poised to play key role for U.S. hotel industry

ARLINGTON, Va. – 19 February 2026 – The recently revised U.S. hotel forecast from CoStar and Tourism Economics projects a 1.7% increase in revenue per available room (RevPAR) during the World Cup months of June and July. While the anticipated lift is modest, it would represent a meaningful contribution to overall industry growth in 2026.

Overall for 2026, the industry is forecasted for a 0.6% RevPAR increase after a decline of 0.3% in 2025. Without that World Cup-driven gain, RevPAR growth would be 40 basis points lower at 0.2%. 

During the last U.S. World Cup in 1994, RevPAR for June and July rose 6.9%, largely on a 5.0% increase in average daily rate. The top-line growth around this year’s World Cup will be almost entirely on a 1.6% 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 (-0.4%) and after (+1.0%) the World Cup.”

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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% for the year and 12.7% in June/July. For comparison, in 1994, host cities collectively saw June/July RevPAR rise 11.9%. Without the World Cup, 2026 host markets would be forecast for just 2.0% 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 (12 June 2026) and remaining elevated through 4 July. After the holiday, occupancy levels revert to the softer pace observed in the days leading up to the tournament’s start.

In addition to updates around forward booking levels, the CoStar and Tourism Economics forecast will continue to be refined in the months ahead.

For more information about the company and its products and services, please visit costargroup.com. 

Additional Performance Data
CoStar’s world-leading hotel performance sample comprises 94,000 properties and 12 million rooms around the globe. Members of the media should refer to the contacts listed below for additional data requests.

About CoStar Group
CoStar Group (NASDAQ: CSGP) is a global leader in commercial real estate information, analytics, online marketplaces, and 3D digital twin technology. Founded in 1986, CoStar Group is dedicated to digitizing the world’s real estate, empowering all people to discover properties, insights, and connections that improve their businesses and lives.

CoStar Group’s major brands include CoStar, a leading global provider of commercial real estate data, analytics, and news; LoopNet, the most trafficked commercial real estate marketplace; Apartments.com, the leading platform for apartment rentals; Homes.com, the fastest-growing residential real estate marketplace; and Domain, one of Australia’s leading property marketplaces. CoStar Group’s industry-leading brands also include Matterport, a leading spatial data company whose platform turns buildings into data to make every space more valuable and accessible; STR, a global leader in hospitality data and benchmarking; Ten-X, an online platform for commercial real estate auctions and negotiated bids; and OnTheMarket, a leading residential property portal in the United Kingdom.

CoStar Group’s websites attracted over 143 million average monthly unique visitors in the third quarter of 2025, serving clients around the world. Headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, CoStar Group is committed to transforming the real estate industry through innovative technology and comprehensive market intelligence. From time to time, we plan to utilize our corporate website as a channel of distribution for material company information. For more information, visit CoStarGroup.com.

This news release includes "forward-looking statements" including, without limitation, statements regarding CoStar's expectations or beliefs regarding the future. These statements are based upon current beliefs and are subject to many risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from these statements. The following factors, among others, could cause or contribute to such differences: the risk that forecasted U.S. hotel RevPAR increases do not occur as expected or are not influenced by the World Cup as expected. More information about potential factors that could cause results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, those stated in CoStar’s filings from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including in CoStar’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024 and Forms 10-Q for the quarterly periods ended March 31, 2025, June 30, 2025, and September 30, 2025, each of which is filed with the SEC, including in the “Risk Factors” section of those filings, as well as CoStar’s other filings with the SEC available at the SEC’s website (www.sec.gov). All forward-looking statements are based on information available to CoStar on the date hereof, and CoStar assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

News Media Contact:
Haley Luther
Senior Communications Manager
hluther@costar.com