How many people will actually visit Lawrence, Kansas, during the World Cup?
City and county officials have estimated as many as 15,000 people could visit the college town just an hour outside of Kansas City. Lawrence will serve as the base camp for Algeria’s national team during the tournament.
But just over a month out, that figure is looking wobbly. Reports say hotel bookings in Kansas City are lagging far behind projections, and Algerians traveling to the U.S. could face Trump administration visa bonds as high as $15,000.
Lawrence World Cup planners say they’re starting to see hotel bookings tick up. But there are still a lot of unknowns about how many visitors to expect.
“I think certainly when we started planning two years ago, we thought that 30 some days out, we would see a clear picture of what was happening,” said Ruth DeWitt, director of community relations for eXplore Lawrence. “We don’t have that, but what we do have is the plans of the way people are going to be welcomed in Lawrence.”
Score Lawrence, a coalition of organizations preparing the city for the tournament, is planning watch parties and other events to celebrate the World Cup in addition to its regular lineup of summer festivals and activities.
Planners are also making a concerted effort to market to Algerian fans who won’t be subject to steep visa bonds – those living in European countries, or North American cities with large Algerian communities like Montreal, Quebec, Chicago and Washington D.C.
In Kansas City, Visit KC says it’s monitoring all factors, but still estimates roughly 650,000 visitors will come over the course of the five-week tournament.
- Ruth DeWitt, director of community relations, eXplore Lawrence
- Jill Jolicoeur, assistant county administrator
