THE PLAYBOOK
FIFA President Gianni Infantino promised the 2026 World Cup would be like "104 Super Bowls in a month."
For some, it has been. For others, it has been a masterclass in how to miss the moment entirely.
The data tells two very different stories. In the UK, pubs and bars have seen revenues surge 90% during England match periods. Tonight's semi-final against Argentina is predicted to shift six million extra pints — a 75% uplift on a typical Wednesday and a bigger boost than New Year's Eve. After the quarter-final win over Norway, footfall between 10pm and 1am was 49% higher than average, with spending peaking not during the match but immediately before kick-off and after the final whistle. Fans do not want to miss the action. They stock up, they watch, they celebrate.
Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, the host cities that were supposed to enjoy a tourism bonanza have had a bumpier ride. Miami sold 15.3% fewer hotel rooms than the same period last year. New York, Toronto and several other host cities saw match-day bookings fall below 2025 levels. Hotels that hiked rates by up to 500% in anticipation of overwhelming demand have had to slash prices as the crowds failed to materialise. The "promised windfall," as the New York Times put it, "became a more disappointing reality."
The difference is not luck. It is preparation and positioning.
The UK pubs winning right now understood something fundamental: event hospitality is not about waiting for the crowd to arrive. It is about building the occasion around the event. Extended licensing hours. Pre-match food offers. Post-match celebrations. Staff briefed and ready. Stock levels checked. The atmosphere intentional, not accidental.
The host city hotels that struggled made a classic error. They assumed demand would appear simply because the event existed. They raised prices without raising the experience. They displaced their regular guests — corporate groups, association planners, leisure travellers — and then found the expected flood of football fans never quite arrived.
Event-driven footfall is not a passive gift. It is an opportunity you either capture or watch walk past your door.
THE TRIAGE
This week: When you have not prepared for tonight
If you are reading this on the morning of the semi-final and your venue has done nothing to prepare, here is what you can still do.
First, check your stock. The data shows beer and cider sales increase by 40% or more during England matches. If you are running light, make a call now. Running out mid-match is worse than not showing the game at all.
Second, brief your team. The spending peaks are predictable: just before kick-off and immediately after the final whistle. Those are your pressure points. Make sure everyone knows that the fifteen minutes before 8pm and the fifteen minutes after the match ends will be your busiest windows of the night.
Third, extend your kitchen. Food sales rose over 80% during the last England match. If your kitchen usually closes at 9pm, keep it open. Steak, pizza and anything that can be eaten with one eye on the screen will sell.
Fourth, think about what happens if England win. Post-match spending surged 353% after the Croatia victory. If you close at 11pm, you are walking away from the biggest revenue window of the night. If you can stay open, stay open.
You cannot undo a lack of preparation, but you can still position yourself to capture the crowd that is already coming.
THE REWRITE
How to describe your venue on event nights when it sounds like everyone else's
Before:
"Join us for the big game! We'll be showing the match on our big screens with drinks offers available. Book now to avoid disappointment."
After:
"We open the doors at six, the kitchen stays open until the final whistle, and we have never run out of beer during a knockout match. If England win, we are not closing early. Tables go fast — secure yours now."
The first version is generic. The second tells the guest exactly what to expect and why your venue is the right choice. It sells the experience, not the fact that you own a television.
THE PAIN POINT
This week: The host city hotel that priced itself out of the tournament
A hotel in one of the US host cities — let us call it a cautionary tale rather than a public shaming — saw the World Cup fixture list and immediately raised rates by 400%.
The logic seemed sound. Demand would be unprecedented. Fans would pay anything. The rooms would sell themselves.
They did not.
Corporate clients who had been planning a summer conference took one look at the rates and moved to a different city. Leisure guests who might have visited anyway chose a different destination. The international fans FIFA had promised — 40% of all visitors, according to their projections — never arrived in the expected numbers.
By the time the hotel slashed prices, the damage was done. The regular guests had already booked elsewhere. The football fans who did show up found cheaper options. The hotel ended the group stage with lower occupancy than the same period last year, and the revenue bump from higher rates did not come close to covering the lost volume.
Event pricing is not about extracting maximum value from a captive audience. It is about balancing rate with demand and remembering that your regular guests are watching how you behave. Displace them once, and they may not come back.
THE ONE THING
Your Game Plan starts with one move.
Walk your floor at 7pm tonight — one hour before kick-off — and ask yourself three questions.
Is every table ready for guests who want to stay for three hours? Is the bar stocked for a 40% uplift in demand? Does every member of staff know what happens if England win?
If the answer to any of those is no, you have sixty minutes to fix it. The crowd is coming. The only question is whether you are ready to serve them.
Thanks for checking in. See you next Wednesday.
Sarah Marian