Kansas City homeowners hoped for a windfall by renting out their places to tourists during the World Cup. But despite an overall increase in bookings, many hosts haven’t seen an influx of guests.
With millions of visitors descending on 11 cities in the U.S., Mexico and Canada, employers and transportation agencies are looking for ways to avoid traffic and complications with those commuting to and from work.
Restaurant owners are divided: some are hiring aggressively while others are holding off, hoping the crowds materialize before they commit to new staff.
As the World Cup gets closer, transit agencies in cities including Seattle, Boston, and Kansas City are pushing to complete some long-awaited projects and planning to temporarily expand service on their systems.
In spite of efforts to protect buyers from the perils of the resale market, the confusion of the process, coupled with sheer demand, has ultimately prevented devoted fans from getting tickets.
The U.S. has tightened vetting of foreign visitors — and banned them outright from four participating nations. But there is a special visa program for FIFA ticketholders.
Kansas City expects 650,000 fans to attend World Cup games next June and July. Many of them will seek short-term rentals, which could temporarily affect the region’s housing market.
