World Cup as a money machine: FIFA received about $9 billion, Spain — $51 million

The 2026 FIFA World Cup concluded with Spain’s victory, but the main financial winner of the tournament was FIFA. The expansion of the competition to 48 teams, a record 104 matches, expensive tickets, television contracts, and fully sold sponsorship packages turned the world’s largest football tournament into a commercial project worth about nine billion dollars.

On July 19, 2026, the Spanish national team defeated Argentina in the World Cup final with a score of 1-0 after extra time. The decisive goal in the 106th minute was scored by Ferran Torres, and the Spanish team won its second championship title in history — the first was obtained in 2010.

For the victory, the Royal Spanish Football Federation received 51 million dollars from FIFA. Argentina, as the finalist, received 34 million, and England, which took third place, earned 30 million dollars. The French federation received 28 million for fourth place.

However, even record prize money for national teams looks modest against the total amount the tournament brought to its organizers.

Almost $9 billion for one championship

According to estimates published by CNBC, FIFA expects to receive about 13 billion dollars for the four-year commercial cycle ending with the 2026 World Cup. Almost nine billion of this amount is expected to be directly related to the current tournament.

About 3.9 billion dollars comes from the sale of television broadcast rights. More than three billion should be provided by tickets, corporate boxes, hotel and VIP packages, as well as other hospitality programs. These figures are currently revenue estimates, not the final confirmed net profit for FIFA: the full financial result will be known after the organization’s financial statements are published.

The commercial success is primarily explained by the new competition format. For the first time, 48 teams participated in the final part of the World Cup instead of 32. The number of matches increased from 64 in the 2022 tournament in Qatar to 104, and the duration of the competition increased to about six weeks.

The additional 40 matches mean dozens of hours of new television content, more advertising breaks, more tickets sold, and additional sponsorship opportunities. The championship was held in three countries — the USA, Canada, and Mexico — and the total number of spectators in the stadiums reached approximately 6.7 million people, setting a new tournament record.

All global sponsorship packages for the championship were sold even before it began. FIFA fully realized both the highest category of partnership contracts and separate packages of official sponsors for the 2026 World Cup.

Thus, the expansion of the tournament turned out to be not only a sporting but primarily an economic decision. FIFA President Gianni Infantino repeatedly stated that increasing the number of participants gives a chance to smaller football countries, but the financial benefits of such a format are also obvious.

Teams shared a record $871 million

After an additional budget review, FIFA increased the total payout amount to the 48 participating national federations to 871 million dollars. This is about 15% more than the amount initially approved and almost twice the prize fund of the 2022 World Cup, which was 440 million.

The decision to add more than 100 million dollars was made after appeals from several European federations. They pointed out that the large distances between cities in the USA, Canada, and Mexico, the duration of the tournament, accommodation expenses, and tax obligations could make participation financially unprofitable for teams that quickly leave the competition.

The final distribution of prize money looked as follows:

• Spain, World Champion — $51 million;
• Argentina, second place — $34 million;
• England, third place — $30 million;
• France, fourth place — $28 million;
• quarter-finalists — $20 million each;
• round of 16 participants — $16 million each;
• teams eliminated in the first playoff round — $12 million each;
• teams that finished after the group stage — $10 million each.

In addition, each federation received 2.5 million dollars for team preparation. Therefore, even a team that lost all group stage matches could count on a minimum of 12.5 million dollars.

It is important to understand that these funds are not transferred directly to the players but to the national federations. Each country independently determines what portion of the money will go to players, coaches, staff, football development, or covering expenses.

FIFA also paid for business-class flights for delegations, accommodation and meals for groups of up to 50 people, internal flights, and ground transportation. Insurance for players, additional hotel rooms, and some related expenses remained the responsibility of the national federations.

For NAnews — Israel News, the economic side of the tournament shows how much the modern World Cup has changed. It is no longer just a competition of national teams but a global media platform that combines television, advertising, tourism, the hotel business, digital services, and the political demonstration of international influence.

After the success of 48 teams, FIFA is thinking about 64

The commercial result of the 2026 World Cup has already intensified the discussion about the next expansion. Gianni Infantino confirmed that FIFA will consider the possibility of increasing the number of participants in the 2030 World Cup from 48 to 64 teams. According to him, this issue will be studied by the organization’s relevant committees after the completion of the 2026 tournament.

The expansion has not yet been approved. The official format of the 2030 World Cup still provides for 48 participants.

The main hosts of the next championship will be Spain, Portugal, and Morocco. Additionally, one jubilee match will be held in Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay — in honor of the centenary of the first World Cup, held in Uruguay in 1930. Thus, the competition will cover six countries and three continents for the first time.

With a format of 64 participants, almost a third of FIFA’s 211 national associations will reach the final part. Proponents of the idea believe that this will allow more countries to get a historic chance and accelerate the development of football in Africa, Asia, and other regions.

Opponents warn that expansion will reduce the value of the qualifying selection, increase the load on players, and lead to a large number of matches between teams of different levels. UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin previously directly called the proposal for 64 teams a bad idea.

However, after the financial success of the 2026 World Cup, economic arguments may prove stronger than sporting objections. More teams mean more matches, advertising contracts, tickets, broadcasts, and markets involved in the tournament.

NAnews — Israel News notes that the 2026 World Cup became an important milestone: FIFA effectively proved that expanding the competition can significantly increase the commercial value of football. Spain took home the cup and 51 million dollars, but the main financial trophy — about nine billion dollars in revenue — remained with the organizers.