The 2026 FIFA World Cup champion will receive a record $50 million prize, the largest winner’s payout in the tournament’s history.
That figure represents an $8 million increase from the $42 million Argentina collected after winning the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
FIFA’s total team distribution for the 2026 tournament reaches $871 million, including a $655 million performance prize pool spread across all 48 participating nations.
Prize money flows directly to national federations rather than to individual players, coaches, or staff members on the winning side.
Despite that structure, American tax authorities are positioned to collect revenue regardless of which nation ultimately lifts the trophy this summer.
“It doesn’t make a difference who wins the game. The IRS will get a piece,” said Robert Raiola, Director of Sports and Entertainment Group at PKF O’Connor Davies.
The IRS, Mexico’s Servicio de Administración Tributaria, and the Canada Revenue Agency have reached an agreement to divide FIFA prize money among the three host nations based on the share of matches played in each country.
Under that agreement, prize money is apportioned by multiplying total earnings by the number of matches played in a given jurisdiction, then dividing by the total number of matches played across all three host countries.
With matches spread across 16 cities in three nations, players, coaches, and even referees must navigate a complex web of local, state, and federal tax obligations tied to where they perform their work.
A so-called jock tax means athletes competing in certain states face additional local levies, such as Philadelphia’s 3.43% tax imposed on workers who perform there, including during a round-of-16 match.
In an April 1, 2026 bulletin for withholding agents, the IRS clarified that foreign athletes and entities are generally subject to 30% withholding on U.S.-source compensation.
Tax treaties between the United States and individual nations can reduce that burden, but coverage is uneven across the field of competing countries.
The U.S. holds a tax treaty with Spain but does not have one with Argentina, two nations that advanced to the final stages of this year’s competition.
Christopher Hall, Director of International Tax Group at PKF O’Connor Davies, emphasized just how individualized the tax picture can be for players sharing the same locker room.
“Even within the same team, there can be different tax answers for different players,” Hall said, underscoring the layers of complexity facing World Cup participants this year.
