The multibillion business behind the 2026 World Cup | OneFootball

North America 2026 will be the most lucrative World Cup, with FIFA’s four-year cycle projected above $11 billion, up 47% on Qatar 2022. According to El Periódico Mediterráneo, hospitality will overtake sponsorship as the second revenue pillar, while commercial deals are set to reach $2.693 billion, a 52% rise.

Media rights remain the backbone. FIFA expects $4.264 billion from broadcasting, a 29% jump, helped by the expansion from 32 to 48 teams.

Group-stage times are set to suit home audiences. Spain’s first two games, against Cabo Verde and Saudi Arabia, kick off at 18.00 and will air on pay platforms and the public broadcaster, understood to have paid €55 million.

The rights market is mixed, with China at $60 million via CMG and India roughly a third of $100 million, alongside a CazéTV deal in Brazil streaming all 104 matches in 4K to 27.1 million subscribers.

Hospitality is the 2026 showpiece, with packages sold in more than 125 countries and around half bought by fans. More than 5 million tickets were sold 50 days out, yet a sell-out needs 6 to 7 million, and prices, visas and political tension around the Trump administration have curbed travel.

Large venues underpin the plan, from Toronto’s BMO Field at 45,000 to Dallas’s AT&T Stadium at 94,000. The Azteca opens on 11 June with Mexico v South Africa, the final is 19 July at MetLife, and FIFA budgets $3.756 billion to stage the event with $1.226 billion for distributions.

Source: El Periódico Mediterráneo