Hotel rooms are expected to cost almost 50% more in Rio de Janeiro "during the upcoming World Cup" than when the city will host the 2016 Olympics, in part because "organizer FIFA's official accommodations agency hasn't set maximum room rates like those promised in Rio's winning bid for the Olympic Games," according to Tales Azzoni of the AP. FIFA is working with Swiss company MATCH Services as the "official accommodations agency for the World Cup." MATCH "signed contracts with the vast majority of hotels in Rio and other cities that will host matches." The "cost difference between the two big events is in large part a result of the local Olympic organizing committee capping hotel prices." Analysts, however, said that it is "also the simple economics of supply and demand:" more fans are expected during the World Cup than the Olympics. More hotel rooms "will be available during the 2016 games because of ongoing construction of facilities." Other analysts said that the price difference also reflected local fervor for the World Cup. Hotel industry consultant Gabriela Otto said, "What may play a role in the difference in prices is the magnitude of having the World Cup in a country like Brazil, where football is everything." The Brazilian government's tourist agency and an AP analysis of prices indicated that "average cost for a hotel room in Rio during the football tournament is expected to run about $460." During the Olympics, the average maximum rate is "estimated at about $310, according to Rio's Olympic bid document used to win the Games" (AP, 12/28).
