The FIFA World Cup 2026 is reshaping travel plans for affluent Gulf travellers, with private aviation marketplace XO reporting a sharp rise in demand for complex North American itineraries tied to the tournament.
According to XO data, enquiries for multi-city journeys spanning the three host countries have risen 145% compared with the same period last year.
GCC enquiries for North America across the seven-week window surrounding the tournament are up 5 per cent year-on-year, while average planned trip durations have grown by 13 per cent, suggesting many travellers are building the tournament into longer summer itineraries rather than travelling for a single fixture.
Interest is concentrated among travellers from Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar. XO said it is seeing demand linked to Qatar’s opening fixture in Toronto and Saudi Arabia’s first match in Miami, with many clients opting for flexible arrangements that allow them to move between host cities as the competition progresses.
“The most striking trend we’re seeing isn’t simply higher demand for North America – it’s that travellers are staying longer and building more ambitious itineraries around the tournament. For travellers from Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar in particular, the tournament is becoming the centrepiece of a much larger North American itinerary,” Youssef Mouallem, Chief Business Officer – Vista — the UAE-based parent company of XO said in a statement.
Mouallem added that the 145 per cent jump in multi-city enquiries reflects a broader preference for flexibility, with clients combining football, business and leisure across multiple destinations and adjusting plans as schedules shift. “Increasingly, technology-enabled booking platforms are giving clients the ability to adapt those plans as schedules evolve, making flexible private travel more accessible than ever,” he added.
XO pointed to the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar as a precedent, saying it recorded a 146 per cent increase in flights into the country as multi-city demand built during that event.
The data comes from XO’s own proprietary enquiry pipeline, rather than third-party sources, and the company acknowledged that booking patterns are expected to continue evolving as the tournament progresses.
