Fifa to increase World Cup prize money by 50% for 2026

Fifa has announced a 50% increase in the prize money it will award to participating teams at next year's World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

It comes amid criticism over the price of tickets at the tournament.

The payout forms the bulk of a record $727m (£544.8m) financial distribution that the governing body's council has approved as a result of the event.

The World Cup winners will receive $50m (£37.4m), with the runners-up being awarded $33m (£24.7m). Those who fail to progress beyond the group stage will get $9m (£6.7m).

In addition, each qualified team will receive $1.5m (£1.1m) to cover preparation costs, meaning that all participating member associations are each guaranteed at least $10.5m (£7.8m).

Fifa president Gianni Infantino said the payments showed the World Cup would "be groundbreaking in terms of its financial contribution to the global football community". The organisation has already forecast record revenues, external of $13bn (£9.7bn) for the 2023-2026 cycle.

The announcement comes a day after Fifa introduced a small number of £45 tickets for all 104 matches at the World Cup following an outcry over its pricing structure for the tournament.

Tom Greatrex, chair of the Football Supporters' Association said: "The record prize fund demonstrates there is no shortage of money associated with the World Cup.

"It is not too late for Fifa to avoid the catastrophic error of all but killing what is special about the World Cup.

"They should act now."

The partial climbdown was welcomed by UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, but he also encouraged Fifa to do more to make tickets more affordable.

New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani has also been critical of Fifa, saying "A $60 'supporter ticket' for 1.6% of seats isn't enough. Not when Fifa just set the highest ticket prices in World Cup history. Thousands spoke up demanding that this be a tournament that New Yorkers can afford.

"Here's what we actually need: end dynamic pricing, cap resale prices, and set aside 15% of tickets for local fans at a discount. The beautiful game must be for everyone."

Fifa's council also approved the establishment of a post-conflict recovery fund "in line with [its] objective of promoting football's unifying values. It said this followed "the announcement made by President Infantino at the Sharm El-Sheikh Summit for Peace on 13 October 2025 that Fifa intended to create a support mechanism for regions that have experienced conflict".

"This financial instrument, which will be open to third-party contributions and be subject to strict oversight, will complement action already implemented under the Fifa Forward Programme and other Fifa initiatives."