Editor’s Note: Connecting the Dots is a series of monthly conversations with Michael Dominguez, President and CEO of Associated Luxury Hotels International. The series examines issues in the global economy that will “connect the dots” to be helpful not only in business but in life as well.
So, what is the decade of sports? For the first time, the United States is really the place as an international destination for international competitions coming to the United States. It has been labeled now the Decade of Sports, and the reason I think this is so important, it does matter to you, the meeting professional, because it will be added compression and added attendance here in the United States in certain periods of time.
But over the next decade, we're not only going to host the World Cup in 2026, we will be hosting the Summer Olympics, the Winter Olympics, and the World Rugby Championships, both male and female. Remember, with the Olympics comes the Paralympics. This is going to bring an international audience to the United States that we have not seen because we have not been that destination.
Many of these events are first time for the United States. That is going to be not only exciting, not only exposing the world to the United States and everything we have to offer, but it's also going to add some compression. So, one of the reasons I think this is an important piece to talk about, let's take 2026: You're going to have 16 destinations in North America that are going to be part of the World Cup, and that is going to be World Cup events and World Cup tournaments that are going to be taking place in literally 16 areas from Canada to Mexico and 13 cities in the United States.
Why does that matter? The compression that is going to build and the increase in pricing that is going to happen between mid-June of 2026, to mid-September of 2026, is going to be immense. What’s going to happen is that it is going to compress other parts of the country, and the reason that matters is if you're planning meetings during that time frame, you're already behind the eight ball if you haven't already locked that in. Space is going to be at a premium. Some of these markets are going to be very costly and what's going to happen is you're going to see people start to expand that window. Groups that used to meet in June probably will be looking at May as well. Groups that used to meet in September might be looking at us October as well. All it's going to do is continue to compress the United States.
It's important to get ahead of it. It doesn't mean you're not going to have options, and it doesn't mean it's going to be outrageous, but also understand, people coming around the world with the World Cup, they are actually going to travel the United States and visit other parts of our country. That is going to add extra audience and extra room nights across the United States. We saw it in Paris during the Olympics, where you had double digit increases the week before the Olympics in Germany, in Italy and in Spain and in other parts of Europe because people that are going to travel around the world are going to take the time to add some extra travel. That is going to happen here in the United States as well.
So, why are we talking about the Decade of Sports? You're going to need to pay attention, we're going to need to plan ahead and we're going to need to understand what those impacts are, either forecasted or what reality is going to look like once we get there. It's going to be important for all of us to be able to work together, to be able to work through this little bit of noise that's going to be there, but what I like to label a very exciting time as we enter the Decade of Sports here in the United States.