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The four teams remaining at the World Cup are guaranteed to leave with tens of millions of dollars from FIFA.
The World Cup champion will earn $51 million, followed by $43 million for the runner-up, $30 million for third place, and $28 million for fourth.
Third and fourth place teams will be decided in the bronze final between the two semifinal losers. The match will take place on Saturday, July 18 in Miami, one day ahead of the final.
Even teams eliminated much earlier in the tournament will receive significant payouts. Each of the 16 teams that did not advance from the group stage earned $10 million, while teams eliminated in the round of 32 earned $12 million. The eight countries knocked out in the round of 16, including the United States, each earned $16 million.
The $10 million received by each team eliminated in the group stage is also the minimum payment guaranteed to every nation that qualified for the tournament. FIFA provides another $2.5 million per country for preparation, along with additional contributions for travel and delegation expenses. That guarantees each participating nation at least $12.5 million before playing a match.
Including those payments, FIFA’s total distribution for the tournament is $871 million. That is up from the $440 million prize pool at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, as the tournament expanded from 32 to 48 teams.
Spain and France, who will face off in the semifinals on Tuesday, are each guaranteed at least $28 million in performance-based prize money.
Spain has earned around $71 million in World Cup prize money since 2002. This year’s guaranteed payout is already equal to more than a third of what it collected over that span.
France has earned an estimated $111 million from World Cup appearances since 2002. Its guaranteed payout would bring its total World Cup prize money over that period to around $139 million.
How Much the USMNT Took Home
The USMNT’s $16 million payout will be divided according to the equal-pay collective bargaining agreements between U.S. Soccer and its men’s and women’s national teams.
U.S. Soccer keeps 20% of the prize money collected from each World Cup. The remaining 80% is divided equally between the men and women who make their respective World Cup rosters.
That means $6.4 million from this year’s payout will be equally divided among the combined 52 players on the men’s and women’s rosters. The same split will apply to the prize money the USWNT earns at the 2027 World Cup, provided the team qualifies. U.S. Soccer must distribute the players’ shares within 31 days of receiving its payment from FIFA.
The prize pool for the 2027 World Cup has not yet been announced. FIFA president Gianni Infantino has said the organization intends to achieve equal prize money for the men’s and women’s tournaments by 2027.
What Every World Cup Team Earned
| Finish | Prize Money | Teams |
| Winner | $51 million | TBD |
| Runner-up | $34 million | TBD |
| Third | $30 million | TBD |
| Fourth | $28 million | TBD |
| 5th-8th | $20 million | Switzerland, Norway, Belgium, Morocco |
| 9th-16th | $16 million | Canada, Paraguay, USA, Portugal, Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Egypt |
| 17th-32nd | $12 million | South Africa, Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Senegal, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Austria, Croatia, Japan, Côte d’Ivoire, Ecuador, DR Congo, Algeria, Ghana, Australia, Cape Verde |
| 33rd-48th | $10 million | South Korea, Czechia, Qatar, Scotland, Haiti, Turkey, Curaçao, Tunisia, Iran, New Zealand, Uruguay, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Jordan, Uzbekistan, Panama |
