Infantino pitches World Cup 26 investment case

FIFA President Gianni Infantino has told business and policy leaders that the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be a major economic and jobs driver for the United States, positioning the tournament as a platform for long-term investment in football infrastructure and grassroots growth.“You have to invest, of course, in America. You have to invest in football or soccer. You have to invest in FIFA.”Infantino spoke at CNBC’s Invest in America Forum in Washington DC, an event moderated by CNBC presenter Sara Eisen that brought together investors, government officials and corporate executives.FIFA said the United States will host 78 of the record 104 matches at the expanded 48-team tournament, with the final scheduled for July 19 in New York New Jersey.The World Trade Organization has estimated the tournament will generate US$80.1bn in gross output across the three host countries, including US$30.5bn in the United States, according to FIFA.Infantino said FIFA expects to generate US$11bn in World Cup revenue in 2026 and that the proceeds will be redirected into football development via projects such as academies, pitches, stadiums and competitions.“That goes in 211 countries all over the world, to allow football projects, academies, stadiums, pitches, competitions for girls, for boys, in 211 countries – more than the UN – to be played and organised.”FIFA said funding distributed to its 211 member associations via the FIFA Forward programme in the 2027–30 cycle is expected to rise to a record US$2.7bn, which it described as an eight-fold increase compared with 10 years ago.FIFA also said it has invested US$5.1bn into global football development during Infantino’s decade in office, using the figures to underline its claim that the World Cup’s commercial upside is tied to redistribution and participation growth.The US market formed a central part of the pitch, with FIFA pointing to the 1994 World Cup as a trigger for the launch of Major League Soccer and arguing the 2026 tournament can accelerate grassroots participation and commercial scale.Infantino said organisers expect around seven million stadium attendances and “tens of millions” of visitors, adding that the event’s scale should translate into jobs, supply-chain demand and localised spending across the 16 host cities and team base camp locations.“It’s around 200,000 permanent jobs which are created (in the US). As far as we are concerned, we have 5,000 employees working only on this. We have around 300,000 people accredited, meaning having a role – having accreditation in the event.”He said a key success measure will be a tournament delivered without security incidents alongside a strong on-pitch product, linking operational performance directly to the event’s reputation with fans, sponsors and public authorities.Infantino also reiterated FIFA’s expectation that Iran will participate after qualification, saying sport should remain separate from politics as tournament planning continues across the United States, Canada and Mexico.