How FIFA makes and spends money during the World Cup

The World Cup has always been the main source of revenue for the International Football Federation (FIFA). During the period 2011 - 2014, the World Cup contributed up to 85% of the revenue for this agency.

According to the financial report, FIFA earned 4.8 billion USD from the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Of this, TV rights alone were 2.43 billion USD. The second largest source of revenue was marketing rights, with 1.53 billion USD. During the tournament in Brazil, ticket sales were 350 million USD. This was the third largest source of revenue for FIFA. They also earned nearly 300 million USD from a number of other types of copyrights.

This year, FIFA is forecast to earn 6 billion USD in the period 2015 - 2018, mainly thanks to the World Cup in Russia.

Meanwhile, the total cost of the 2014 World Cup was 2.2 billion USD, mainly spent on participating teams, federations and television production. Thus, FIFA made a profit of 2.6 billion USD from this event. If calculated for the period 2011 - 2014, their profit was 338 million USD.

Previous World Cups have also brought in huge profits for FIFA. The 2010 World Cup in South Africa helped FIFA earn a profit of 631 million USD in the 2007-2010 period, overcoming the global financial crisis. Before that, the 2006 World Cup also brought in 700 million USD in profit for the organization in the 2003-2006 period.

This year, FIFA is forecast to earn 6 billion USD in the period 2015 - 2018, mainly thanks to the World Cup in Russia. This figure is higher than the target of 5.6 billion USD. Profits in this period will also reach hundreds of millions of USD.

FIFA plans to spend $791 million in prize money for this year's World Cup, up 40% from the previous World Cup. Of that, $400 million will go to the 32 participating teams, while $391 million will go to cover other expenses.

Each team will receive at least $8 million for participating in the World Cup finals. If they reach the round of 16, they will receive another $4 million. If they reach the quarterfinals, that number is increased by another $4 million. In total, the champion team will receive $38 million, the runner-up will receive $28 million, third place will receive $24 million and fourth place will receive $22 million.

The remaining $391 million will be spent on three major items. First, preparation money for the teams - all 32 participating teams will receive $1.5 million each. Second, support money for football clubs with players competing in the World Cup - $209 million. Third, $134 million in compensation for clubs if they suffer losses when their players are injured at the World Cup.

However, compared to other football tournaments in the world, the prize money that the World Cup gives to the teams is quite low. The English Premier League spent a total of 2.9 billion USD for the 2017-2018 season for its 20 teams. Meanwhile, the figure for UEFA is about 1.6 billion USD.