Donald Trump increases the pot » FIFA will give the participating teams the most money in the history of the World Cup!
Article by Daniel Scorpie – Published Tuesday, April 28, 2026, 6:01 p.m. / Updated Tuesday, April 28, 2026, 6:06 p.m.
FIFA is not worried about the situation in Iran and the latest assassination attempt on the US president. Given that the war in the Middle East may affect the World Cup scheduled between June 11 and July 19, it is expected that the budget allocated by Gianni Infantino to the 48 participating national teams will increase, as the Spanish press writes.
“The 'Trump factor' remains relevant with six weeks left until the start of WC 2026”, write AS. Which reveals that the new attempt to assassinate President Donald Trump in Washington has overshadowed the FIFA Congress, which is being held in Vancouver, and from where, however, a message of calm prevails.
“Regarding the Iran national team, no one knows for sure whether it will quit (the replacement could be the United Arab Emirates) nor whether it will abandon the idea of playing its matches in Mexico instead of the USA, a proposal made by the Mexican government,” notes the cited source.
Donald Trump conditions and directs the world from the shadows. The inflation caused by the war has its roots in Iran, and the blockade in the Strait of Hormuz also has serious financial effects, which FIFA, hand in hand with the USA, wants to somehow compensate.
Gianni Infantino, the president of FIFA, and the president of the USA, Donald Trump, present the official entrance ticket to the WC 2026 / Photo: Imago
With fuel prices rising, the federations are barely breaking even. The exception is the teams that go far
In December 2025, the world forum announced that it would allocate the largest amount of prize money in the history of the tournament: 620 million dollars globally. From 9 million as a minimum entry level to 45 million for the title winner, 1.3 million being paid for training and logistical support.
“The federations came with a proposal in Vancouver to increase their earnings. Their argument is that, given the rise in fuel prices, they would barely recoup their expenses, except for teams that make it far into the knockout stages.
In addition, tax exemptions are not uniform in all US states. For example, they operate in Florida, but the federations have to pay 10% of their earnings to the state treasury in New York,” AS notes.
FIFA released a statement confirming that negotiations are underway to increase payments to participating federations and, as a solidarity contribution, to non-participating ones.
