USMNT Eyes Massive 2026 World Cup Payday That Could Transform USWNT's Future

The upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the largest edition in history—featuring 48 competing nations for the first time—and the financial rewards match this expanded scale.

FIFA has announced that $727 million USD will be distributed among participating teams at the World Cup, with each squad guaranteed a minimum of $9 million for group stage participation, plus an additional $1.5 million preparation bonus.

Additional earnings opportunities exist throughout the competition based on advancement, potentially providing transformative financial benefits to certain countries and their players participating in the tournament.

This prize pool represents a substantial increase from the $400 million available at the 2022 Qatar World Cup, where Argentina collected $42 million for their championship victory. The 2026 edition offers considerably enhanced financial rewards for tournament success.

Below is an analysis of potential earnings for the U.S. men's national team and how the U.S. women's national team will also benefit from the USMNT's performance.

USMNT and USWNT Prize Money Distribution Agreement

FIFA typically distributes tournament prize money to national soccer federations rather than making direct payments to players. These federations then decide how to allocate funds among players, staff, and organizational needs; however, U.S. Soccer and various other nations now share winnings with their women's national teams.

Following extensive legal proceedings, the USWNT and USMNT reached a collective bargaining agreement in 2022 extending through 2028. This CBA mandates that both U.S. teams combine and equally distribute 80% of prize money earned at the 2026 and 2027 World Cups.

As an illustration, should the USMNT reach the Round of 16, they would secure at least $15 million in prize money. After reserving 20% for U.S. Soccer federation operations, the remaining funds would be divided equally between men's and women's national team players and staff, totaling at least $6 million.

This same methodology applies to Women's World Cup earnings; nevertheless, a considerable prize money disparity remains between the tournaments. U.S. Soccer previously implemented equal prize sharing in 2022 and 2023, distributing 90% of total prize money earned by each team.

Both U.S. teams reached their respective Round of 16 stages, with the USMNT earning $13 million and the USWNT $1.9 million, resulting in approximately $6.7 million for each team combined.

2026 World Cup Financial Breakdown for USMNT and USWNT