World Cup boom, Middle East gloom could split earnings for US travel firms

"Hotels are the real World Cup winner," analysts at BofA Global Research said.

Hotel operators, however, will also need to raise full-year forecasts to fuel the sector's momentum, analysts said.

Strong domestic demand and premium pricing, especially during the World Cup, are set to drive solid second-quarter results for hotel chains, offsetting weaker Middle East revenue.

Luxury and upper-upscale segments drove a strong quarter, Jefferies said, adding ongoing geopolitical events have yet to impact leisure or business travel.

However, any lift that shows up in second-quarter hotel earnings out of World Cup host markets is "a three-week event, not a trend line," Bookit CEO Lin Dai told Reuters.

"U.S. hotels charged more for the World Cup without actually filling more rooms... Revenue climbed because rooms got expensive, while the number of people actually traveling barely moved. And the spike is already gone."