⁠Is Infantino right? Would football not exist in ‘150 countries’ without FIFA?

Football in 150 countries would not exist without FIFA.

This is the vision of Gianni Infantino, president of world football’s governing body, who defended this idea during a talk at the World Sports Summit, in Dubai, at the end of December.

To contextualize the statement, Infantino’s speech took place weeks after the announcement of general ticket prices for the 2026 World Cup, on December 11, which generated a strong negative reaction and criticism due to the values. This led FIFA to launch, five days later, a fan entry category, offering around 1,000 tickets per game at US$60 to fans of the teams involved in each match.

The FIFA president used the event in Dubai, his first public appearance after the negative repercussions, to explain why generating revenue for the growth of football is essential.

“What is crucial is that the revenue generated goes back into football around the world,” said Infantino. “Without FIFA, there would be no football in 150 countries. There is football because, and thanks to, these revenues that we generate from the World Cup and reinvest globally.”

At the beginning of December, a FIFA spokesperson also stated that “without the entity’s financial support, more than 50% of member associations would not be able to operate”, when commenting on World Cup ticket prices.

Infantino’s interpretation could lead to the idea that football simply would not exist in these countries without FIFA. This, however, does not correspond to reality.

But how much of this money actually reaches the 211 member associations? And why would he be so important to 150 of them?

Through the FIFA Forward development program, associations receive funds over four-year cycles.

In the current cycle, from 2023 to 2026, each association can receive up to US$8 million (around £6.1 million), although the use of this amount is restricted. The total available in the period is US$2.25 billion. On March 19, FIFA announced that this amount will be increased to US$2.7 billion in the 2027-2030 cycle.

Since the creation of FIFA Forward in 2016, when Infantino assumed the presidency, around US$2.8 billion has been made available to federations in the first two cycles of the program.

How can money be used

The US$8 million is divided between operational costs, specific projects, travel and equipment.

Each federation can receive up to US$1.25 million per year for operational expenses such as rent, salaries and maintenance.

Specific projects represent the largest share and can reach up to US$3 million per cycle. The resources are allocated to initiatives that contribute to the long-term development of football, including infrastructure, competitions and national teams.

Associations with annual revenue of less than US$4 million can receive an additional US$1 million per year for travel and accommodation, in addition to US$200,000 throughout the cycle for equipment purchases.

The six continental confederations receive US$60 million over four years, or US$15 million per year, to promote football in their regions.

Would football exist without this money?

According to FIFA, without this support, many countries would not be able to organize competitions.

“It is a fact that, without FIFA’s support, there would be no tournament football in 150 countries. They simply would not have the resources to develop infrastructure and support teams and players,” said a FIFA spokesperson.

Still, experts dispute Infantino’s claim.

Alan Tomlinson, professor emeritus at the University of Brighton and author of “What is FIFA For?”, stated that football existed long before the creation of the entity.

“FIFA needs football more than football needs FIFA,” he said.

In fact, international matches had been played by teams such as England and Scotland since 1872, decades before FIFA was founded.

On the other hand, there is a consensus that many federations depend on these resources to finance categories such as women’s, grassroots and adapted football.

How and when payments are made

The annual transfer of US$1.25 million is divided into two installments: US$650,000 in January and up to US$600,000 in July, as long as the federation meets requirements such as organizing competitions and participating teams in matches throughout the year.

Resources for projects are released according to approval and execution of initiatives.

Supervision and transparency

Federations that receive resources must present independent annual audits. If there are irregularities, FIFA may suspend or block transfers.

Still, reports are not publicly released, which generates criticism about a lack of transparency.

Examples of resource usage

In the United States, the federation used US$3 million from the program to encourage participation in grassroots football.

In the Comoros, part of the money was allocated to the construction of infrastructure, such as technical centers and stadiums.

In England, resources were invested in grassroots projects and the development of women’s football.

Cases of irregularities

In May 2024, leaders of the Bangladesh federation were sanctioned for misuse of resources, including presenting falsified documents.

Other cases involved federations from Panama, Venezuela, Equatorial Guinea and the Maldives.

Conclusion

Overall, FIFA resources contribute to the development of global football.

Although it is an exaggeration to say that the sport would not exist without the entity in 150 countries, there are arguments that organized football, especially at an international level, would not have the same structure without this funding.