WORLD CUP LIKELY BOOSTED BLOWOUT US, CANADA JOBS NUMBERS

(Bloomberg) -- Strong hiring in leisure and hospitality helped fuel a surge in hiring in the US and Canada last month as the two nations geared up to host the FIFA World Cup starting next week.

Boosted by hiring at restaurants, bars and hotels, the US hospitality industry added the most jobs in more than three years in May, according to government data out Friday. Canada also saw a jump in employment, driven in part by strong hiring in the sector, a separate report showed.

“While there appears to be some broadening of job gains and cyclical momentum, leisure and hospitality likely saw a temporary boost from the upcoming World Cup,” Michael Reid, head of US economics at the Royal Bank of Canada, said of both countries. “But as far as momentum goes, it will be fleeting.”

The US, Canada and Mexico are set to host the world’s largest sporting event between June 11 and July 19. While sky-high ticket and accommodation prices — as well as rising airfares due to the Iran war — have raised concerns about poor turnout, the World Cup is still seen as providing a once-in-a-generation economic boost.

FIFA expects the event to generate the equivalent of about 185,000 full-time jobs in the US alone, with the accommodation and food services and air transportation sectors benefiting the most. Firms in places like Atlanta, Philadelphia and San Francisco have been optimistic about the World Cup in recent weeks, the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book survey of regional business contacts showed.

Barclays economists, in a report Friday, said the World Cup is likely to provide only a modest and temporary boost to the US economy and employment, estimating it could lift gross domestic product by about 0.2% during the summer months. Any gains would then fade in subsequent quarters and be “barely perceptible at the end of the year,” Pooja Sriram, a US economist at the firm, said in the report.

Officials expect the event to generate demand beyond direct World Cup activities, with the economic impact trickling down to other sectors. US local governments in May added the most jobs in more than two years, Friday’s report showed — possibly reflecting hiring for supporting roles like security ahead of the event, according to Thomas Simons, the chief US economist at Jefferies. Arts, entertainment and recreation employers also increased headcount.

The US added 172,000 jobs last month in total, which blew past all estimates, and the unemployment rate held steady at 4.3%. Canada employment also exceeded forecasts with a nearly 88,000 gain, and the unemployment rate fell to 6.6%.

--With assistance from Mario Baker Ramirez, Maria Eloisa Capurro and María Paula Mijares Torres.

(Updates with Barclays analysis beginning in sixth paragraph.)

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2026-06-05T16:57:05Z