Here's how much money countries will earn for competing at FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup 2026 is bigger than ever before, and so are the prize winnings.
Earlier this week, FIFA released the prize winnings for each of the countries participating in the upcoming World Cup, including how much will go to the winning squad.
The entire prize purse for participating teams is US$727 million, which is up a substantial amount from the US$400 million pot that was disbursed among winning squads in 2022.
Back in 2022, Argentina was awarded US$42 million for taking home the World Cup. Here’s how much the winner and the rest of the competing teams will be awarded in 2026.
- Champions: US$50 million
- Runners-up: US$33 million
- 3rd place: US$29 million
- 4th place: US$27 million
- 5th-8th place: US$19 million
- 9th-16th place: US$15 million
- 17th- 32nd place: US$11 million
- 33rd-48th place: US$9 million
In addition to this, each team will also receive US$1.5 million to cover preparation costs.
Therefore, any team that qualifies for the World Cup will receive at least US$10.5 million from FIFA.
So, how is this prize money divvied up?
That decision lies with the country. In 2018, players and coaches on the French team reportedly received bonuses of about US$350,000 each. Star striker Kylian Mbappe made headlines for donating his winnings to an organization that offers sports programs to disabled and hospitalized children.
Canada Soccer ended up in some hot water following the FIFA World Cup 2022, after prize money hadn’t been paid out to players on the men’s national team more than eight months after the conclusion of the World Cup. That labour dispute was settled in 2024.
Other countries, such as Germany in 2014, negotiated their bonuses before the World Cup began.
FIFA World Cup 2026 begins on June 11, 2026. The first game in Canada takes place the following day on June 12, when the Canadian men’s national team takes on one of Italy, Wales, Northern Ireland, or Bosnia and Herzegovina at Toronto Stadium.