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Los Angeles hotels saved by last-minute surge in World Cup bookings

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Los Angeles hotels saved by last-minute surge in World Cup bookings

After showing worryingly weak early interest, World Cup fans showed up at the last minute to boost Los Angeles hotel occupancy and room rates.

Ahead of the last tournament game in Los Angeles is on Friday, hotels popular with soccer fans said they were full and charging higher rates.

In early May, the American Hotel and Lodging Assn. reported a lack of hotel bookings just a month shy of the games.

About 80% of respondents said hotel bookings were below initial expectations, and more than 65% of L.A. respondents said bookings were lower than a typical summer. In the report, half of the L.A. hotel respondents said they assumed that visa barriers and distance from venues were contributing to the low early bookings.

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The turnout that many were concerned had also been hurt by high ticket prices ended up being better than those first projections.

The Pierside in Santa Monica has been exceptionally busy during the World Cup, with many tourists opting to stay near the beach despite the longer trek to SoFi Stadium where the games are held. The Pierside has no rooms for this weekend.

“We’ll have a day or two gap, but other than that we’ve been full,” said a Pierside manager. “I think beach-side hotels have been busier, because tourists are more interested in going to the beach while here.”

In the so-called Stadium District, the Anthem Hotel saw even greater numbers of tourists than they had initially expected for the tournament, including both domestic and international guests.

Its few remaining rooms were going for more than $500 per night late in the week.

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“Many guests are planning longer stays, using match days as the centerpiece of a broader Los Angeles itinerary,” said Ruben Flores, general manager at the hotel. “Being in the heart of the Stadium District puts us in a unique position to welcome fans who want the energy of the tournament to extend beyond the stadium.”

Downtown L.A.‘s Hotel Indigo got a surge in bookings the days leading up to the July 2 knockout game between Spain and Austria. Previously, FIFA had reserved thousands of rooms downtown for staff, media, and other stakeholders, but later canceled the reservation.

The American Hotel and Lodging Assn. attributed the delayed booking boom to young international travelers waiting until right before the game to book hotels in search of last-minute deals.

“Demand has picked up, consistent with a recent trend toward shorter booking windows for events of this caliber,” Rosanna Maietta, the association’s chief executive, said in a statement. “Unlike typical leisure travel, many travelers finalized plans and secured tickets closer to the start of the games.”

Not all hotels have seen the last-minute boom in bookings. Hotel June next to Los Angeles International Airport said its bookings were lower than expected.

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“We were expecting more reservations, but I think it’s because the rates have gone up,” said Kira Moreno from Hotel June. “We have still been steady but not been too full or too busy, pretty similar to any other day.”

Airbnb proved to be a popular alternative to traditional hotels, with offers like the World Cup bundle, which included free World Cup tickets with select Airbnb stays at an average price of $365 per night.

In recent years, L.A. has struggled to bring tourists into the city. Last year, the number of international tourists went down by 5.5% from the year before, marking the first time tourism had fallen since the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.

Immigration raids and wildfires dissuaded tourists from visiting, and even Canadian tourists who typically make up the largest number of foreign visitors to California dropped 21%.

Increased flight costs also discouraged many tourists. With the U.S.-Iran conflict continuing and the Strait of Hormuz closed, jet fuel prices skyrocketed, making international travel unrealistic for many tourists. International air travel to L.A. County had already fallen 30% from August to November 2025.

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Human-Shaped Robots at This Car Factory Can Perform Humanlike Tasks

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Humanoids — human-shaped robots — at this BMW factory in South Carolina are expected to respond to voice commands, solve problems and react to unforeseen events. U.S. automakers hope that this technology can give them a fighting chance against their Chinese rivals that enjoy lower costs.

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Spotify to label ‘AI personas’ and exclude AI music from personal recommendations

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Spotify to label ‘AI personas’ and exclude AI music from personal recommendations

In its latest effort to protect human creators from the flood of synthetic music, Spotify will soon require AI-generated identities to carry an “AI Persona” label while barring their tracks from users’ algorithmic mixes.

The change will take effect in mid-September. It follows Spotify’s earlier moves to help subscribers understand the difference between genuine and artificial creators. The platform announced a verification badge in April designed to highlight human artists. In a statement Tuesday, Spotify said the new AI persona label is meant to make the streamer “the most transparent and trustworthy place to listen to music.” Music from labeled AI personas will also be excluded from the Swedish company’s personalized recommendations by default.

“While we believe all artists have creative choice in determining how they present themselves, Spotify’s programming is focused on elevating music from authentic artists building careers in music,” the company said.

The AI persona badge will appear on an artist’s profile, in the search feature and in playlists.

This is a step in the right direction, said Tiffany Naiman, the director of Music Industry Programs at UCLA. But, she said, she’s more interested in how the company will be identifying AI personas.

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“I want to know the process. How [will they] know the difference? Are there going to be [real] artists that get tied up in it?” Naiman said. “It feels very ‘Blade Runner,’ right? Like you’re human, you’re not human.”

Starting Tuesday, Spotify users will be able to identify themselves as AI personas, if applicable. But the company said it “won’t rely on self-disclosure alone” and will use “human review alongside AI investigative tools to apply the label.”

Artists who get labeled as AI personas by Spotify will be allowed to appeal the label. In the coming months, users will also have the ability to report artist profiles as potential AI personas.

The label is the latest feature from the streaming platform that builds on transparency between the artist and their listeners. Recently, Spotify has also introduced SongDNA, an interactive feature that shows the creative team behind the track; AI Credits, a disclaimer where artists can reveal how much AI was used in their creative process; and Artist Profile Protection, which allows artists to review and approve all releases on Spotify.

Artificial intelligence is becoming an essential part of Spotify’s business. The company announced a new AI deal last week with the digital music licensing company Merlin. The partnership will enable artists across the more than 30,000 labels and distributors in Merlin’s network to participate in Spotify’s upcoming AI tool. It hasn’t launched yet, but the goal is to let fans create AI-generated remixes and covers of existing songs on the platform.

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Spotify is following in the steps of other streaming platforms that have taken more aggressive approaches to the new technology. Deezer, a French streamer, was the first to detect, tag and exclude AI-generated music from algorithmic recommendations. The company recently disclosed that up to 90,000 AI tracks are being uploaded to the platform daily, representing more than 50% of its new music uploads. Tidal has banned AI-generated music from receiving royalties on its platform.

“We know the music ecosystem is evolving, and so will our approach,” said Spotify in a statement. “We’ll continue to adapt as the landscape changes and as we learn from artists, listeners, and industry partners.”

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Nine shows, including ‘Clueless’ sequel, receive state tax credit

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Nine shows, including ‘Clueless’ sequel, receive state tax credit

Nine television shows, including a sequel to the 1995 hit “Clueless,” have been awarded a tax credit for filming in the Golden State, according to the California Film Commission.

Most of the shows chosen for a production incentive are in their first season, such as Universal Television’s “Newlyweds,” a new series starring Jamie Lee Curtis that will film 26 days in Los Angeles and received a credit of $5.8 million.

The largest credit of $45.1 million went to a new, untitled scripted series from Disney Entertainment Television, which will film 142 days in California, most of which are in Los Angeles, according to the state’s film commission.

Other recipients include Paramount Television Studios’ “Ascent,” which stars Viola Davis ($21 million), Universal Television’s “The Rockford Files” reboot ($21 million) and season two of Sony Pictures Television’s “S.W.A.T. Exiles” ($16.2 million). The “Clueless” sequel, which will see actor Alicia Silverstone reprise her role as Cher, was awarded a $16.3 million credit.

“I’m so grateful that ‘Clueless’ gets to tell Cher’s next chapter in the city where her story began,” Silverstone said in a statement. “Los Angeles has been through so much over the past several years, but the city is resilient. You simply can’t recreate this city anywhere else, and I’m excited to bring Cher home.”

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In total, the nine productions are expected to account for more than 1,000 shoot days in California and result in jobs for 3,000 cast and crew members, as well as 25,000 background actors, the California Film Commission said. The shows are set to generate about $608 million in direct production spending in state.

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