New Airbnb owner prepares for World Cup travelers in Lawrence

The following is a guest post by University of Kansas journalism student, Bea Norton.

With the 2026 FIFA World Cup traveling to Kansas City this summer, an influx of travelers will be visiting the Kansas City metro area, and teams will be staying at various camps throughout Kansas and Missouri. Algeria’s decision to set its home base at Rock Chalk Park in Lawrence has ensured a busy summer for the city, which means that businesses and individuals will likely see a boost in consumers and profit. Potentially a great way to make extra money is by renting out property to travelers visiting the area.

Although he hasn’t run an Airbnb before, University of Kansas professor Richard Embers and his wife are opening a property this summer in hopes that they’ll be able to host World Cup visitors.

“We made the decision that we might as well start gaining a little bit of money for [the rental],” Embers said. “And when the World Cup came along, that really interests us because some of the numbers people were throwing out there was like — you’ve got to be kidding me.”

According to an article on BiggerPockets, a real estate education site, the average Airbnb host can expect a profit of $4,000 from World Cup rentals alone.

“You know, you can make one night or one weekend what you would make in a month on some of these reported numbers,” Embers said. “I think those were way overstated, and it’s not really going to be like that.”

Though skeptical, Embers still believes becoming a host will be profitable and looks forward to opening the property this summer. He has been busy preparing the property on top of his current workload.

Everything You Need to Know about the World Cup in Kansas City

Still, while Embers is new to the short-term rental aspects of owning an Airbnb, he previously rented his property out to family members and friends.

Short-term rentals are becoming increasingly popular in Lawrence thanks to the Lawrence City Commission’s January decision to lift the cap on short-term rentals from May 25 to July 26. This allows property owners to operate short-term rentals without a limit, a grand expansion from the previous limit of three rental properties.

“I think the safer bet is to know that we need this additional housing to have the people in our community get the full benefit of it,” Mayor Brad Finkeldei said in the meeting.

Other city commissioners suggested cracking down on consequences for rentals exceeding the current cap before and after the World Cup period to maintain typical business operations and travel flow.

Undoubtedly, the World Cup is certain to bring traffic to Kansas City, Lawrence and many other cities. Kansas City is set to host six matches between June 16 and July 11, leaving many opportunities for Airbnbs and short-term rentals to thrive.

The payoff will only be certain after the Cup concludes, but Embers suggests there’s no better time to try being an Airbnb host than this summer.

“We’ll get some good clientele, and we’ll get some good reviews,” Embers said. “At least we’ll have that.”