ZURICH (DA) — Curaçao could receive more money from FIFA after its historic qualification for the 2026 World Cup, with soccer’s global governing body discussing an increase in prize money for all 48 participating teams.
The proposal must be approved at Tuesday’s FIFA Council meeting, which is being held before the 76th FIFA Congress in Vancouver.
FIFA had said in December that prize money for the 2026 World Cup would be 50% higher than the previous edition, reaching $655 million. But FIFA now says the amount available is set to increase as the governing body projects more than $11 billion in revenue for the 2023-26 cycle.
“FIFA can confirm it is in discussions with associations around the world to increase available revenues,” a FIFA spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said the discussions include “a proposed increase of financial contributions to all qualified teams for the FIFA World Cup 2026 and of development funding available to all 211 member associations.”
For Curaçao, the decision could add another financial boost to the country’s first World Cup campaign. Under FIFA’s December plan, each qualified nation was already set to receive $1.5 million to cover preparation costs.
The original package also included performance-based payments for the 48 teams. The 16 nations that failed to advance from the initial group phase were set to earn $9 million, while the champions were set to receive $50 million and the runners-up $33 million.
FIFA said the 2026 World Cup will be “groundbreaking in terms of its financial contribution to the global football community.”
The tournament will be played from June 11 to July 19 in the United States, Mexico and Canada. Curaçao will play its Group E matches against Germany on June 14 at Houston Stadium, Ecuador on June 20 at Kansas City Stadium and Côte d’Ivoire on June 25 at Philadelphia Stadium.