00:00The World Cup is now five weeks away. A ticket to maybe see Ronaldo play starts at $2,000 and
00:06hotel rooms across host cities are sitting empty. Here's what's happening. The American Hotel and
00:12Lodging Association surveyed hotels across 11 host cities and found nearly 80% are booking below
00:18their original projections. In Kansas City, the main stage, it's 85 to 90% with some hotels
00:24actually performing worse than a normal summer with nothing going on. And you might be wondering
00:28why that is. Well, FIFA reserved massive room blocks across host cities early on, creating what
00:34looked like an overwhelming demand. Then they released most of them back onto the market. So
00:39hotels that thought they were sold out suddenly weren't. Meanwhile, international visitors who
00:44usually stay longer and spend more aren't planning on showing up. And there's a big reason why. A
00:50ticket to the U.S. opener costs over $4,000. A semi-final seat in Dallas tops $11,000 and
00:57the
00:57average resale price for the final is over $16,000. When you add flights, hotels and
01:03transportation, international fans are looking at a trip that can easily run five figures. And
01:08many are deciding it's not worth it. FIFA president Gianni Infantino was asked about the backlash this
01:14week and laughed it off promising to personally deliver a hot dog to anyone who buys a $2 million
01:19ticket to the final. Critics in the hotel
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