ATLANTA — With just two weeks until the FIFA World Cup arrives in Atlanta, some short-term rental hosts and hotel operators say bookings have not reached the levels they expected, prompting some property managers to lower prices in hopes of attracting more guests.
Andrew Jean-Baptiste, who owns a company that manages 17 short-term rental properties across metro Atlanta, said he anticipated a major financial boost from the tournament.
“This was my opportunity to double my normal revenue, so that’s what I did,” Jean-Baptiste said.
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Jean-Baptiste believes he priced correctly at the beginning and said his properties have remained busy, especially during what’s already his peak summer season.
“I have been fully booked for several months now, for June and July across all my properties,” he said.
An Airbnb spokesperson sent Channel 2’s Eryn Rogers the following statement:
“The World Cup is set to be the biggest hosting event in Airbnb’s history — surpassing the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris. Since beginning outreach in October 2025, over 100,000 homes have listed on Airbnb in host cities for the first time (as of May 1). More guests are now booked to stay in host city homes during the tournament than at any event before, and around one in six guests booking tournament-time stays is a first-time Airbnb user."
However, not all property managers are seeing the same demand.
Sarah Joy, who manages 20 Airbnb properties around Atlanta, said bookings have fallen short of expectations.
“It was supposed to be record bookings, but we’re not really seeing the demand as we, you know, was predicted,” Joy said.
Joy said only 10 of her properties are currently booked for the tournament period.
“You really have to drop your pricing to really pick that demand up, but the supply is crazy, like there’s over 15, 20,000 Airbnbs up right now in Atlanta,” she said.
She has one Airbnb located about a half-mile from the stadium that was originally listed for $1,200 per night but has since been reduced to $312 per night.
Joy said some international travelers have canceled reservations because they were unable to obtain visas.
“They said they no longer coming because their application didn’t get approved,” she said.
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Others have canceled because of costs, she said, adding that some property managers in other World Cup host cities have not faced the same challenges.
“Their pricing is still being able to be doubled, or if not tripled,” Joy said.
Some Atlanta hotels also reported lower-than-expected demand, though bookings remain stronger than normal because of the World Cup.
“I think less than we anticipated in the very beginning, but still strong group leads from certain countries,” said Ramon Reyes, managing director of the Omni Atlanta Hotel. “As we get closer, and we’re starting to see that momentum pick up, I feel a whole lot better today than certainly we did, you know, several weeks ago.”
Both short-term rental operators and hotel leaders said they are seeing more domestic travelers than international visitors coming to Atlanta for the tournament.
Hotel operators also said travelers are booking shorter stays than initially anticipated, a trend they attribute to the higher share of domestic visitors.
The FIFA World Cup matches in Atlanta are scheduled to begin later this month, bringing thousands of visitors to the city and surrounding areas.
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