FOOTBALL governing body FIFA has revealed that it made payments totalling $209 million to clubs whose players featured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
The tournament was held from November 18 to December 18 last year, with 32 teams participating, each with a squad of 26 players.
FIFA explained that the payments were made according to the number of days each of the 837 players involved had spent at the tournament, which was held at that time of the year due to Qatar’s weather.
The global organisation’s president Gianni Infantino also confirmed that the figure will rise for the 2026 and 2030 editions of the World Cup, which will be expanded to 48 countries.
“Following the renewal of the memorandum of understanding with the European Clubs’ Association, the amount redistributed to clubs will further increase from $209m for the 2018 and 2022 editions to $355m for the 2026 and 2030 tournaments, recognising yet again the importance of the role played by clubs,” Infantino said today.
In total, 440 clubs received some form of payment, with the actual amount calculated to include player transfers during the qualifying series.
Manchester City, who won the unique Premier League, FA Cup and UEFA Champions League treble last season, received more payments than any other club from FIFA, the figures showed.
The English club received $4.6m from the world governing body, with Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and Paris St-Germain next on the list.
English clubs received more than those in any other country — $37.7m — while the £158.9m given to European teams accounted for 76% of the overall sum distributed.
Manchester United, with $3.32m, received the next highest payment after City among English clubs, with Chelsea getting $3.26m.
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