Airbnb offers $750 to first-time North Texas hosts ahead of World Cup

Airbnb is dangling a $750 cash bonus to North Texas homeowners who list their properties for the first time before the FIFA World Cup kicks off this summer - the company's largest new host incentive ever - as the short-term rental platform races to secure lodging for the millions of fans expected to flood the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

To qualify, prospective hosts must publish a listing for an entire home in an eligible DFW zip code and complete at least one guest reservation - valued at $100 or more - by July 31, 2026. Eligible DFW zip codes span across Dallas, Tarrant, Collin, and Denton counties, covering communities from Arlington and Fort Worth to Plano, Frisco, Irving, and central Dallas neighborhoods.

Airbnb says searches for stays in World Cup host cities are up 80% compared to the same period last year, and the company is looking to grow its supply of available homes to match that surge in demand.

Existing North Texas Airbnb hosts are already listing their properties at nearly double or triple their usual rates ahead of the tournament, underscoring just how tight the lodging market is expected to become.

Airbnb estimates that DFW hosts who rent their homes during the World Cup could earn an average of $4,400 - and the $750 bonus comes on top of that.

The economic stakes for the region are significant. With North Texas serving as a host metro, Airbnb hosts in the area are expected to welcome approximately 42,000 guests, potentially generating an estimated $502 million in travel spending and supporting more than 2,000 jobs through 2026.

Airbnb describes the program as its largest-ever incentive for new hosts, and it is available across all 16 North American World Cup host cities in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.

The FIFA World Cup 2026 runs from June through July, with games in the DFW area played at AT&T Stadium in Arlington. Dallas-area hosts should be aware that the city treats stays under 30 days as short-term rentals, requires registration, and mandates collection of the 6% Texas state hotel tax and 9% Dallas hotel occupancy tax.

To sign up, prospective hosts must submit their name and email on the Airbnb incentive landing page before publishing their listing.

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