FIFA is distributing over $100 million in additional funding to World Cup teams to assist with the unexpectedly high costs of competing in North America.
During a meeting on Tuesday, FIFA’s ruling council unanimously agreed to increase the baseline payments to each federation by $2 million, raising the minimum to $12.5 million. The organization anticipates generating at least $11 billion in revenue for the tournament, which is set to begin on June 11 in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Some federations, particularly those from Europe, expressed concerns to FIFA that the prize money structure and preparation payment arrangements established last year would result in financial losses unless their teams performed well into the knockout stages.
Teams competing in the United States also face specific tax obligations, which are not applicable to their counterparts in Canada and Mexico.
The financial assistance for pre-tournament training and expenses will increase from $1.5 million to $2.5 million, and each federation’s basic prize money will see a $1 million increase, now totaling $10 million, as decided by the FIFA Council during its meeting in World Cup host city Vancouver.
The total prize pool, which was announced in December, amounts to $655 million, with $50 million designated for the eventual champion.
The Argentine federation received $42 million in prize money for winning the 2022 tournament in Qatar, which featured a total prize fund of $440 million for 32 teams.
Hotel and Travel Costs
FIFA also announced it will provide an additional $16 million in “subsidies for team delegation costs” and will allocate more tickets to each federation for their matches.
According to World Cup regulations, FIFA is required to cover business-class round-trip airfare for each federation’s representatives traveling to the tournament, as well as accommodations for a 50-person delegation. Hotel expenses commence five nights prior to a team’s first match and continue for one night following their elimination.
FIFA is also responsible for the transportation of up to 50 delegation members, including a dedicated fleet of vehicles and an equipment truck.
World Cup teams’ federations must cover their own “adequate insurance… including but not limited to injuries, accidents, illness, and travel,” as well as “incidental hotel expenses” and the costs associated with housing additional delegation members.