Gianni Infantino

FIFA’s Expanded World Cup Pushes Costs Onto Fans and Host Cities

Bloomberg argues that the expanded 2026 World Cup is built to generate record revenue for FIFA while shifting much of the cost and risk onto fans and host cities. The tournament’s 48-team, three-country format creates more matches, broadcast inventory and ticketing opportunities, but dynamic pricing, resale fees, transport costs, visas and security obligations are making attendance and hosting more expensive. The result, the piece says, is a World Cup marketed as a mass global event while increasingly priced and managed like a premium spectacle.