FIFA World Cup Payouts: Arsenal Set to Earn $3.3 Million
Chris Weatherspoon reports for The Athletic that FIFA will pay out $355m (£265m) to clubs that release players for participation in the 2026 World Cup, a 70% increase on previous tournaments.
Of that money, $250m will go towards the actual tournament, whilst another $100m will reward clubs that released players for qualifiers. The remaining $5m will be “allocated to the benefit of club football”.
FIFA pays on the basis of how many days players are at the World Cup, with clubs entitled to roughly $5,000 per day, per player. The Athletic have calculated that this means Arsenal are owed $3.3m (£2.46m) in total.
That puts Arsenal fourth in the overall standings, with Manchester City earning $4.4m, Barcelona earning $3.9m, and Bayern Munich earning $3.4m.
The Athletic points out that Arsenal would have earned around $500,000 more from FIFA if they hadn’t participated in the Champions League final, as their involvement meant releasing their players to their national teams five days late.
However, the report also highlights that Arsenal earned far more than $500,000 by making the final, so it was still a net financial positive to be involved.
Arsenal’s figure of roughly £2.5m isn’t transformative for the club’s summer transfer strategy, but it could be significant if invested in an academy signing.
Additionally, the payout underscores that Arsenal players had a strong showing in international competitions, with eight Gunners reaching the final weekend of the World Cup.
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