The 2026 World Cup will launch a format of 48 selections and will not only increase sporting excitement, but also economic gains for all participating teams, since the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) will distribute a million-dollar prize pool in the tournament that will be played in North America.
Initially, football’s highest governing body had announced a pool of US$727 million for the participants, but in April 2026 increased the figure to US$871 million. For this reason, FIFA approved a record financial distribution for this World Cup and, according to CNN, the increase responds to the commercial success of the tournament.
The new amount makes the 2026 World Cup the national team competition with the elderly prize pool in history, greatly exceeding the US$440 million that was distributed in the edition of Qatar 2022where Argentina became world champion after defeating France at the Iconic stadium in Lusailin Doha.
In addition, the 48 teams that will participate in the 2026 World Cup have already received millions of dollars even before before the tournament starts. Therefore, it is not surprising that during a World Cup there is a large amount of money at stake, especially when it is disputed in the territory of the United States, Mexico and Canada.
How much money does each team earn for participating?
According to the platform specialized in sports beIN SPORTSthe selections that end in the last places of the tournament and do not exceed the group stage will receive US$9 million. In addition, each federation will get US$1 million for preparation expenses, so any qualified team will be guaranteed US$10 million.
Furthermore, players do not receive a compensation directly from FIFA for participating in the World Cup, so they do not receive a pay not one prize individual. However, the body does deliver money to the clubs and federations, who decide how to distribute it among the footballers and other members of the national delegation.
In this situation, FIFA will distribute a total of US$665 million among the 48 qualified teams and the world champion will receive US$50 milliona figure that represents US$8 million (Q60 million 960 thousand) more than the prize that the Argentina team received after winning the World Cup in Qatar in December 2022.
However, the world champion can accumulate more money by adding the prizes for each round passed (group stage, round of 32, round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals and final), so it could reach the US$194 million. This shows that FIFA’s financial contributions increased for this World Cup.
The distribution of World Cup prizes
- From 48th to 33rd place: US$9 million (Q68 million 580 thousand)
- From 32nd to 17th place: US$11 million (Q83 million 820 thousand)
- From 16th to 9th place: US$15 million (Q114 million 300 thousand)
- From 5th to 8th place: US$19 million (Q144 million 780 thousand)
- Fourth place: US$27 million (Q205 million 740 thousand)
- Third place: US$29 million (Q220 million 980 thousand)
- Second place: US$33 million (Q251 million 460 thousand)
- First place: US$50 million (Q380 million 150 thousand)
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— FIFA World Cup 🏆 (@fifaworldcup_es) June 9, 2026