Are huge events like the World Cup actually worth the rush and excitement for the tourist industry?

No, apparently not, at least in advance sales. Regular guests tend to steer clear of or postpone in the face of World Cup madness, especially the ones who want peace and quiet and keine Störung (no static) with rowdy football fans -- businessmen, basically, which hurts. Plus, that angry god FIFA can do whatever it wants, like book tens of thousands of hotel rooms and back out a month before the Cup, leaving the hotels high and dry. I guess we wouldn't have anything without FIFA, but please, have mercy on the little people, O Great and Terrible Lord!

No one in the actual industry was too excited in the first place, because they know it's a mixed bag. Non-domestic interest is mostly exports, too, so Germans have been bearish about the World Cup horn O' plenty since the beginning. With sport, you never know. Well, one thing is pretty sure: last-minute fans will be all over the place.

"When it comes to large sporting events like the World Cup," says Heckel, "there is often a last minute booking trend. A lot of times, fans wait to see how well their teams do before deciding to come."