NYC Hotel Bookings Are Showing No Sign of a World Cup Boost (1)

New York’s hotel industry has spent years dreaming of this year’s FIFA World Cup as a cash cow that will fill the city with free-spending visitors. But seven weeks before kickoff, hoteliers are increasingly worried about the lack of a tournament bump.

City hotels have sold just 18% of available rooms between June 13, date of the first match at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium, and July 19, when the venue hosts the World Cup final. The comparable figure this time a year ago was 26%, according to data compiled by CoStar Group Inc. earlier this month.

FIFA signage at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Photographer: Yuki Iwamura/Bloomberg

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