FIFA said it has earned an unprecedented $7.5 billion in revenue from four years of commercial deals tied to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, said a report on Monday.
According to Business Today, on Sunday, the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 came to an end with a historic football match between Argentina and France, which the South American nation won in an exciting finish that involved penalty shootouts.
The game featured the legendary performances of Kylian Mbappe of France, who scored a hat-trick and still ended on the losing side, and Lionel Messi of Argentina.
FIFA predicted a total revenue of about $4.7 billion for the four years leading up to the Qatar World Cup 2022. Nearly the same amount was earned over the four years leading up to the 2018 World Cup in Russia, reported CNN-News 18.
According to the report, quoting FIFA’s website, until the end of December 2020, FIFA had signed commercial contracts worth approximately $3.8 million, representing approximately 82% of the total revenue budget for 2022.
The next four-year budget, which was presented to the FIFA Council on December 16, estimates total earnings of $11 billion for the 2026 World Cup, which will be hosted by three North American countries: the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
The Qatar World Cup, FIFA’s primary source of income, occurred at the end of its four-year cycle, which causes a delayed pattern of revenue recognition.
The Qatar World Cup 2022 has generated approximately $7.5 billion for FIFA through commercial deals, an increase of $1 billion from the previous World Cup in Russia in 2018.
The increase in revenue during this year’s football world cup is also due to FIFA’s cost-saving decision to hold the entire competition in one location, which reduced the need for additional infrastructure and travel expenses. Within a 50-kilometer radius of Doha, there were eight stadiums total.
FIFA officials predicted that the windfall will result in an additional $700,000 investment for the game, with $300,000 going toward emergency COVID-19 funding.
FIFA derives majority of its income from five different sources: television broadcasting rights, marketing rights, hospitality rights and ticket sales, licencing rights, and other revenue.
With a share of 56% of total earnings, television broadcasting rights are the biggest contributor, followed by marketing rights at 29%. 15% of the total budget for revenue in 2022 was made up of the remaining amounts.
FIFA anticipates a nearly 50% increase in revenue for the 2026 World Cup, primarily due to broadcasting and sponsorship agreements, as well as ticket sales and hospitality at a competition that will take place in several NFL stadiums. (NewsWire)