FIFA World Cup Drives Airbnb Boom for Texas Host, Rates Double

The FIFA World Cup is set to bring a surge of visitors to host cities across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, with Arlington, Texas, a suburb of the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, among the locations for matches.

Local Airbnb hosts, such as Jennifer Smith from McKinney, Texas, are experiencing a significant increase in demand. Smith, 55, who owns two two-bedroom, one-bathroom cottages named Kentucky Cottage and Derby, reported that her properties are nearly fully booked for June and July. Her usual nightly rates, which range from $155 to $250, have approximately doubled during this period, a change she attributes to the international appeal of the tournament.

Smith invested around $75,000 in renovating her historic properties and uses Airbnb's Smart Pricing tool to adjust rates. She noted that she only fully grasped the magnitude of the event when she started receiving bookings from international guests.

Airbnb is actively supporting this market trend, offering a $750 incentive to first-time hosts in any of the 16 World Cup host cities who list their homes by July 31, 2026. Since the company began its outreach in 2025, over 100,000 new short-term rentals have been listed in these cities.

While demand is high, pricing varies significantly. For example, one Dallas Airbnb host is charging $9,130 for a one-night stay in a modest one-bedroom rental on June 22, coinciding with a scheduled Argentina and Austria match at AT&T Stadium in Arlington. However, Airbnb data indicates that 77% of entire-home listings still available for tournament stays are priced below $500 per night.

According to Business Insider, Smith's properties are located about 45 minutes from AT&T Stadium.