International tourism to the US could get a much-needed boost from the 2026 FIFA World Cup after a sluggish 2025, when visitors stayed away amid unease over President Donald Trump's trade policies and concerns about tougher border scrutiny.

Foreign visitation to the US. was down 4% year to date through July, according to visa data from the National Travel and Tourism Office. Travel data company Tourism Economics projects a full-year decline of about 6.3% in 2025.

That could reverse next year, when the world's biggest sporting event is expected to draw over a million visitors as it kicks off across 16 host cities in North America, 11 of which are in the US.

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The World Cup, which w

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