When FIFA announced the details of the ticket prices for the World Cup in 2026, there was monumental outcry at the eye-watering investment that supporters will have to make to follow their nation in North America and Mexico. And the reason for those astronomical prices, it seems, has now been revealed…
Football’s governing body has confirmed that the 2026 World Cup will have record prize money paid out, with a cool £490 million up for grabs – including £37.4 million to the winning nation. Somebody has to pay for that huge leap in prize money, which is 50% higher than for the 2022 edition in Qatar. So why not the fans, right?
Record Revenue
It was at a FIFA Council meeting in December that the record prize money figure was announced, with £543 million in total to be paid out to competing nations – the £490 million will go to the 48 countries that will make up the final World Cup field.
Fair enough, you might think. But it should be noted that alongside the most expensive tickets in World Cup history, FIFA will also finance the prize pool as a result of banking record revenues from its latest four-year accounting period.
The governing body publishes its finances at the end of each World Cup cycle, with the window between the 2022 and 2026 editions expected to yield a handsome £9.7 billion in revenue. That, you won’t be surprised to learn, is also a record – aided by the introduction of the much-maligned Club World Cup in 2025.
The previous record for FIFA profitability came during the 2019-2022 cycle, in which they banked £5.6 billion – so they are anticipating an almighty uptick in profitability leading into the next edition of the World Cup.
£45 World Cup Tickets (Kind Of)
FIFA has since made a humiliating U-turn on their ticket pricing policy for the tournament – although, true to form for Gianni Infantino and co, it’s an infinitesimal row back. They have revealed that more discount tickets, priced at $60 (around £45), will be made available for World Cup games.
Although the actual specifics are yet to be confirmed, it’s thought that around 10% of all tickets handed to each participating nation’s football association will be in the £45 tranche. However, it’s also very likely that these will be in the most desirable seats – and, given the enormous size of some of the host stadia at the 2026 World Cup, supporters will likely need a telescope through which to see the action unfold.
A FIFA spokesperson commented:
Demand for tickets has been off the scale, more than 20 million requests so far in this latest phase. We have listened to feedback and this new [price] category is the right thing to do.
Making $60 tickets available to more fans, including the most loyal ones who travel, was agreed on unanimously. Associations will need to work out who best should receive them.
For fans that aren’t able to get their hands on those £45 tickets, there’s bad news… They will have to dig deep to acquire tickets in the more expensive price bands. For context, that would be £198 to watch England’s opening group game against Croatia… and a whopping £3,140 for the final.
All told, it means that ticket prices have experienced a 500% surge compared to the 2022 tournament in Qatar, with some fan groups calculating that to watch a team play in every game of the World Cup through to the final, it will cost some £5,160. At least FIFA are passing their record revenues onto the supporters that make football what it is, right?
World Cup Prize Money Compared
How does the prize money at the 2026 World Cup compare to past editions? Here’s what’s on the line in 2026:
- Winner: $50 million (£37.4 million)
- Runner Up: $33 million (£24.6 million)
- Third Place: $29 million (£21.6 million)
- Fourth Place: $27 million (£20.1 million)
- Quarter Finalist: $19 million each (£14.2 million)
- Round of 16: $15 million each (£11.2 million)
- Round of 32: $11 million each (£8.2 million)
- Group Stage Exit: $9 million each (£6.7 million)
With £1.1 million guaranteed as well just for participation – what FIFA have termed ‘preparation costs’, it means that every nation at the 2026 World Cup is guaranteed a minimum of £7.85 million… even if they get knocked out in the group phase.
It’s a huge increase on the 2022 tournament. There, the winner banked £31.4 million and the runner-up £22.4 million, although a group stage exit was matched with a £6.7 million payment – the same as 2026, signalling a prize money ‘freeze’ on the weakest performers.
All told, $440 million (£329 million) was the total prize fund in Qatar – a cool £161 million less than in 2026. For the 2018 edition in Russia, the total prize pot was $400 million (£299 million), so the jump from there to Qatar was just 10%. From Qatar to North America and Mexico in 2026, the leap is around 33% higher.
World Cup vs Club World Cup Prize Money
Bizarrely, the prize money for the international World Cup is considerably lower than the inaugural edition of the revamped Club World Cup in 2025. FIFA effectively bribed clubs into giving their new version of the stale format credence, with a total prize fund of $1 billion (£750 million) paid out – around 25% more than the international World Cup of 2026.
Each team was paid a ‘participation pillar’ payment, based upon their standing and commercial value. The biggest payments were reserved for Europe’s biggest clubs, who could net up to £28.5 million just for turning up. The prize money was paid out on an ascending scale as usual, with the winners – Chelsea – taking home a cheque for $40 million (£29.9 million).
The Blues netted a handsome £84 million from the Club World Cup in 2025… around £46 million more than the winner of the international World Cup in 2026 is guaranteed.
