Follow the money: inside FIFA's record $13 billion World Cup

The 2026 World Cup will be the richest in history — FIFA projects $13 billion for the cycle, an $871m prize pool and a record payout for the winners. Where the money comes from, and who is left paying the bills.

The 2026 World Cup will be the richest in history, and it is not close. FIFA projects $13 billion in revenue across its 2023–2026 cycle, up from $7.5 billion last time, with the tournament itself expected to bring in around $8.9 billion, as SportsPro laid out.

The money comes from three main taps. Broadcasting rights lead the way at roughly $3.9 billion — about 44 per cent of the total — driven by 40 extra matches and a global audience in the billions. Ticketing and hospitality add about $3 billion, lifted by big North American stadiums and the dynamic pricing FIFA used for the first time. Sponsorship and marketing bring in another $1.8 billion.

The players cash in too. The prize pool is a record $871 million — every nation banks at least $12.5 million just for turning up, and the winners take home around $53.5 million, Bleacher Report reported. FIFA also pays clubs roughly $11,000 a day for each player they release, spreading some of the wealth back into the game.

FIFA, technically a non-profit, says most of the money is reinvested. About 90 per cent of its budget is earmarked for football development across its 211 member associations — infrastructure, youth and women's programmes — which is where federations like Kenya's stand to benefit, however indirectly.

Not everyone is celebrating. The host cities carry costs FIFA does not: security, transport upgrades and stadium operations that run into hundreds of millions of dollars, while the ticket, broadcast and sponsorship revenue flows to FIFA, as ESPN detailed. Cities are betting that tourist spending eventually offsets the bill.

For fans in Kenya, the contrast is stark. A tournament generating record billions is, for most of the world, something to watch from home — the football priced out of reach even as the money pours in. The 2026 World Cup is the biggest show football has ever staged. It is also the most expensive ever, to stage and to attend.