Argentina vs Spain World Cup final: How much the champions and runners-up will get from FIFA’s record $871 million prize fund | Football News

Lionel Messi, FIFA World Cup Trophy, and Lamine Yamal (AP Photos)

When Argentina and Spain walk onto the pitch for Sunday’s FIFA World Cup final, history, immortality and football’s most coveted trophy will all be at stake. But with the glory comes a great financial reward.The winners of the 2026 FIFA World Cup will receive a whopping $51 million in prize money, the largest champion payout in the tournament’s history, while the runners-up will receive $34 million, according to an AP report.This year’s edition has already broken records off the field, with FIFA distributing a historic $871 million to the 48 participating nations – almost double the $440 million prize pool from the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.For defending champions Argentina or Spain, lifting the trophy will also mean receiving World Cup championship rings for the first time, along with football’s ultimate prize and a place in the sport’s history.

FIFA will almost double the prize pool for expanded the 48-team World Cup

The expanded 48-team tournament prompted FIFA to increase its financial commitment. The governing body added more than $100 million to the total prize fund earlier this year after several national federations, mainly from Europe, argued that rising travel and accommodation costs across the United States, Canada and Mexico made the original distribution insufficient.Each of the 48 participating teams is guaranteed at least $12.5 million.That includes:

The preparation grant was introduced to avoid disputes between players and national federations about bonuses before major tournaments.

unabridged FIFA World Cup 2026 prize money

The deeper a team progresses, the greater the financial reward.

The payout to the winners represents a huge increase from the $42 million Argentina earned after winning the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Prize money is not paid directly to players

Despite the impressive numbers, FIFA pays the prize money to each country’s football federation—not directly to the players.How the money is distributed depends on the federation’s own policies and agreements with the players.Besides the prize money, FIFA also covers a significant portion of each team’s tournament expenses. The governing body pays for business-class return flights, accommodation for the 50-member delegation, domestic travel within the host countries and a dedicated fleet of vehicles, including an equipment truck.National federations remain responsible for insurance, additional delegation members and incidental hotel expenses.