This World Cup match has fans locking in short term rentals in South Florida
South Florida’s short-term rental market should expect to see more Scottish kilts and Brazilian bikinis this year than it has ever seen before.
Ahead of the World Cup, which this year is co-hosted by Mexico, the United States and Canada, short-term rentals are booming in South Florida — by one measure it’s the second-hottest market among the tournament’s 16 host cities or metropolitan areas. The Brazil-Scotland group stage match on June 24 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens is currently the biggest draw for renters seeking lodging of the entire 2026 World Cup.
According to data analytics firm AirDNA, which tracks short-term rental Airbnb and Vrbo data, over 4,200 nights have been booked in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale area the night of the match. Average rates in Miami the night of the Brazil-Scotland match is $258; in Fort Lauderdale, it is $260 per night. The figures are current as of Dec. 29, 2025, but expected to change between now and opening kickoff.
That figure exceeds the number of bookings for any other group stage match, according to the data.
It’s 1,000 nights more than the June 27 Colombia-Portugal match — perhaps Cristiano Ronaldo’s fans are intimidated by having to come to Lionel Messi’s current hometown — and dwarfs the other group stage matches in Miami which are Uruguay-Saudi Arabia on June 17 and Uruguay against Cape Verde on June 21.
Among U.S. host cities, only Boston comes anywhere close: the Scotland-Haiti match has 3,175 nights booked the night of the June 13 match.
Overall, Mexico City, where the World Cup kicks off on June 11, fares well: The June 11 tournament opener pitting Mexico against South Africa has the second most bookings, just 42 fewer than Brazil-Scotland and the June 17 group match between Colombia and Uzbekistan has 3611 nights booked.
The occupancy rate in Miami for the night of the Brazil-Scotland match is 20%. That figure “is very, very high for being about 6 months out from an event,” Bram Gallagher, an economist at AirDNA, said in an interview with the Herald.
He said the typical median booking for short-term rentals is made about one month in advance.
For bookings including the night before the match and the night of it, Miami-Fort Lauderdale ranked second among the 16 host cities with 34,189 total nights, according to AirDNA data. New York-Jersey City-Newark finished first with over 5,000 more nights.
South Florida’s bookings are more than twice that of markets like Houston, the San Francisco Bay Area and Kansas City. And it showed a 237% increase compared to the same dates in 2025. But there is still plenty of availability, according to AirDNA’s data.
The region seems to be doing well in pricing. The average booked rate so far is $270 per night. That’s fourth among 16 hosts, behind Los Angeles, Boston and Seattle. Leader Los Angeles is at $322 per night.
But those who’ve not yet made plans will need to shell out much more cash, as the early birds are snapping up the deals. Average available rate in South Florida is $539/night, second highest among all host cities. Only Kansas City is higher, at $573 per night.
Gallagher, the AIrDNA economist, said, “Over time, we expect booked rates will approach available rates.”