Thirty nations competing at this summer’s 2026 World Cup finals in the United States, Mexico and Canada now face additional costs and potential losses.
The Guardian are reporting that FIFA have failed to agree a blanket tax exemption with the United States government ahead of the showpiece international tournament, which gets underway on June 11.
Only 18 of the 48 qualified countries have signed a double taxation agreement (DTA) with the United States. This exempts the delegations from those 18 nations from paying federal taxes. All the countries that have signed DTAs are European, except for Australia, Egypt, Morocco and South Africa.
Smaller Nations Impacted
Curacao
Curacao
The report adds that FIFA has had tax-free status in the United States since the 1994 World Cup; however, that exemption doesn’t apply to all of the 48 qualifiers. National associations without signed DTAs will need to pay various federal, state and city taxes on their earnings from this summer’s tournament.
Many of the smallest nations competing at the 2026 World Cup, including tournament debutants Curacao and Cape Verde, subsequently face larger tax bills than the likes of England and France, whose government are covered with signed DTAs.
However, the exemption does not apply to players’ earnings. Athletes and artists are obliged to pay tax when they perform in the US under federal law. Backroom staff and coaches, such as England head coach Thomas Tuchel, are covered.
Tax consultant Oriani Morrison was quoted by The Guardian as saying: “The teams that come from more advanced, sophisticated jurisdictions that have a tax treaty with the US, such as England and Spain, will have much lower costs than smaller countries such as Curacao and Haiti, for example.”
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Carlo Ancelotti to Pay Tax in Brazil and United States
Brazil head coach Carlo Ancelotti
Brazil head coach Carlo Ancelotti
While Tuchel will only be taxed in the UK, FIFA’s failure to agree a blanket exemption is bad news for Brazil boss Carlo Ancelotti - one of the world’s best managers - who will be forced to pay tax on his earnings in both Brazil and the United States.
While the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) is likely to cover Ancelotti’s additional tax bill, the double taxation threatens to cause a bigger problem for smaller associations. Higher-rate taxpayers, including international footballers and coaches, will need to pay 37% income tax.
“Many of the smaller teams, ones for whom this kind of windfall would have made a huge difference to their football industries, are going to be penalised with massive US tax bills,” Morrison added.
“That is money that could have developed their football industries locally a lot better, but it’s going to stay in the US. There’s a huge discrepancy. It’s going to cost most non-European countries a lot of money to go to the World Cup.”
World Cup co-hosts Canada and Mexico have granted tax exemptions to all associations, which means lower bills for national teams playing group games in either country.
FIFA declined to comment when contacted by The Guardian, although sources at world football’s governing body say they are working with all nationals associations to provide help and assistance on tax issues.