The earnings, which FIFA revealed on Sunday to officials from more than 200 of its member nations, are $1bn more than what the organisation pulled in from the previous World Cup cycle leading up to the 2018 event in Russia.
The extra income was buoyed by commercial deals with this year’s hosts. Qatar Energy joined as a top-tier sponsor, and new third-tier sponsors include Qatari bank QNB and telecommunications firm Ooredoo. FIFA also added second-tier sponsor deals this year from financial platform crypto.com and blockchain provider Algorand, its first new American sponsor in more than a decade.
Key broadcast deals for this year’s World Cup were signed during Sepp Blatter’s presidency in two-tournament deals for the Russia and Qatar events. They included deals with Fox in the United States and Qatari broadcaster BeIN Sports from 2011.
FIFA pays for host countries’ organising committees, prize money, travel and accommodation for teams and support staff. It also pays for a legacy fund to help develop the sport in the host country after the World Cup circus has left town.
The winners of the Qatar World Cup will receive $44m out of a total prize pot of $440m.
The organisation’s revenues are likely to approach $10bn for the next four years, thanks to a new financial strategy for women’s football and the expanded 2026 World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico, which will see 48 teams compete for the first time, up from the present 32.
FIFA has an almost blank slate for the 2026 edition with top-tier sponsors Coca-Cola, Adidas and Wanda the only deals currently extended. Separate sponsor deals for women’s football are being signed for the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
Arab leaders dominated the list of world leaders who attended the opening ceremony of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar on Sunday.
Prominent among those who attended were Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a close ally of Qatar, and Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and the presidents of Egypt and Algeria, as well as the United Nations Secretary-General, were also in attendance at the glittering ceremony to open the first World Cup in the Middle East.
Here’s the list of leaders who attended the inauguration:
- King Abdullah II bin Hussein of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
- President of the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria Abdelmadjid Tebboune
- President of the Arab Republic of Egypt Abdel Fattah el-Sisi
- President of the State of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas
- President of the Republic of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan
- Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
- Representative of the Emir of the State of Kuwait Crown Prince Sheikh Mishal Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah
- Crown Prince of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan Hussein bin Abdullah II
- Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
- Crown Prince of Dubai Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum
- Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports of the Sultanate of Oman and Representative of the Sultan of Oman Theyazin bin Haitham Al Said
- Caretaker Prime Minister of the Republic of Lebanon Najib Mikati
- President of the Republic of Senegal Macky Sall
- President of the Republic of Rwanda Paul Kagame
- President of the Republic of Liberia George Weah
- Vice President of the Republic of Ecuador Alfredo Borrero
- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres
- President of the International Olympic Committee Thomas Bach
- Aide to the President of the Russian Federation Igor Levitin
- Vice President of the Republic of India Jagdeep Dhankhar
- Vice President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela Delcy Eloina Rodriguez
- FIFA President Gianni Infantino
The BBC relegated coverage of the opening ceremony on Sunday to its second-tier streams, including its “red button” service, its online iPlayer app and its sports website.Viewers tuning in to its flagship coverage on BBC One, however, were not able to watch the inclusivity-themed spectacular from the Al-Bayt Stadium in Al Khor, and missed highlights such as a performance by BTS star Jungkook and Qatari singer Fahad al-Kubaisi.
Morgan Freeman, who narrated the ceremony, appeared in the stadium to shake hands with a FIFA World Cup ambassador suffering from a rare spinal disorder in an image meant to represent inclusion in a country that has been facing criticism over its human rights record.
BBC One had been airing the Chelsea-Tottenham match in the Women’s Super League, which finished after the opening ceremony had begun. The BBC’s social media team also put out a four-minute Instagram video at about the same time, recalling the 1982 Gay Games, organised by former Olympians to highlight homophobia in sport.
When the channel switched to its programme broadcast from Qatar, hosts Gary Lineker, Alex Scott and Alex Shearer discussed the allegations levelled against the host country.
“It’s the most controversial World Cup in history and a ball hasn’t even been kicked,” said Lineker, a former England football captain, in his opening monologue.
“Ever since FIFA chose Qatar back in 2010, the smallest nation to have hosted football’s greatest competition has faced some big questions. From accusations of corruption in the bidding process to the treatment of migrant workers who built the stadiums where many lost their lives.”
