ZURICH, 29 October 2026 — FIFA will propose a 6.35 billion dollar fund for football development between 2027 and 2030, including 25 million dollars for each of its 211 member associations, more than double the 10 million dollars originally planned, according to a document dated 14 October 2026 reviewed by The Associated Press and reported on 14 October 2026.
Illustration: Children playing football on a grass pitch in front of a small community stadium.
What Happened
Soccer's world governing body said in the document that it will use the financial success of the latest FIFA World Cup "to enhance investment in football development across 211 FIFA member associations, confederations and other stakeholders," according to ESPN's report of the Associated Press review. Originally, each association was to receive 10 million dollars for the four-year period. Under the new proposal, that figure rises to 25 million dollars each.
The document said FIFA proposed to distribute more than 3.5 billion dollars from its financial reserves, based on what it called the unprecedented commercial success of its expanded 48-team World Cup, ESPN reported. The overall package of 6.35 billion dollars would more than double the level of planned distribution funding for the 2027-2030 period, with what FIFA described as a specific focus on investment and development of women's and youth football.
Each of FIFA's six continental confederations would receive 99 million dollars under the plan, and each of the 13 zonal and regional associations would receive 8.25 million dollars, according to the Sporting Tribune's report of the proposal. A further travel-and-equipment element covering 100 member associations was also reported as part of the package.
The proposed funding would be divided into three equal parts, according to the Sporting Tribune: one-third for women's and youth football development, one-third for infrastructure, and one-third for projects. The infrastructure allocation would also be subject to provisions ensuring equal access for women's and youth football.
The plan is "to be finalized by FIFA council in December 2026, subject to final approval by the 77th FIFA Congress in March 2027," the document said, according to ESPN. That timetable means the proposal remains a proposal for now: the December council meeting will settle eligibility criteria, application procedures, approval processes, disbursement arrangements and audit requirements, and the congress must then approve it before money flows.
Background
The scale of the increase becomes clearer when compared with the current development programme. Under FIFA Forward 3.0, covering 2023-2026, each association could access up to 8 million dollars for operating costs and development projects, with travel and accommodation assistance subject to specific requirements, according to Inside the Games. Funding for the next four-year cycle had initially been envisaged at 10 million dollars per association, but the latest proposal would raise that amount substantially, subject to conditions governing eligibility, oversight and expenditure reporting that have yet to be finalised.
The money is underpinned by the commercial success of the 2026 World Cup, held in the United States, Canada and Mexico with an expanded 48-team format. According to Inside the Games, FIFA expects revenue for the financial cycle ending in 2026 to reach around 15 billion dollars, well above initial projections, potentially allowing it to draw more than 3.5 billion dollars from its reserves to finance the new programme. Reports of the proposal also cited an unaudited projected surplus of between 5.2 billion and 5.6 billion dollars for the 2023-2026 cycle.
Illustration: A golden football trophy on a podium in a packed stadium with confetti.
The proposal arrives at a politically charged moment for FIFA. It comes as European soccer leaders seek a candidate to try to oust Gianni Infantino as FIFA president, ESPN reported, and after Infantino's divisive World Cup private investment plan was scrapped within days of being revealed in July. Infantino, who became FIFA president in 2016, is seeking re-election in 2027, with the congress vote scheduled for March of that year.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino said the proposed increase reflected the organisation's commitment to ensuring that the financial success of the World Cup benefits football development worldwide. "As has been said many times since 2016, FIFA's money, including its reserves, belongs to the 211 FIFA Member Associations, and the proposal to increase investment across all FIFA Member Associations, confederations and other stakeholders to USD 6.35 billion aims to reinforce our unwavering commitment to further supporting football development and access globally thanks to the outstanding financial result of the FIFA World Cup 2026," he said, according to reports of the proposal.
The plan has been given the name FIFA Surplus Solidarity Programme in some reports, reflecting its funding source: surplus revenue from the World Cup cycle, redistributed as solidarity funding to the associations that make up world football's membership.
Why It Matters
For smaller football nations, the difference between 10 million and 25 million dollars over four years is transformative. Many member associations operate on tight budgets, and a 25 million dollar allocation could fund youth academies, coaching education, women's leagues, pitches and facilities that would otherwise depend on volatile domestic revenue or sporadic grants. For the smallest federations, it could reshape what is possible across an entire four-year cycle.
The equal-thirds split also signals a deliberate shift in priorities. Reserving a third of the fund for women's and youth football, and guaranteeing equal access for women's and youth football within the infrastructure third, would lock in investment in the parts of the game that have historically been underfunded. If the congress approves the plan as drafted, women's and youth programmes would be beneficiaries by design rather than by discretion.
For the wider game, the proposal tests FIFA's model of redistributing World Cup wealth. The expanded 48-team tournament generated record commercial returns, and the question has always been how much of that money reaches the grassroots. A 6.35 billion dollar development fund would be the largest such package in FIFA's history, and its approval would set a precedent for how future World Cup surpluses are shared.
There is also a governance dimension. Critics, including UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin and CONCACAF president Victor Montagliani, had previously pushed for a 10 million dollar figure per association, according to reports at the time. A proposal that more than doubles that figure, presented ahead of a presidential election year, will inevitably be read both as development policy and as politics, and the conditions attached to the money, including oversight and reporting rules still to be finalised, will determine how much of it genuinely reaches pitches and players.
What Happens Next
The next milestone is the FIFA Council meeting in December 2026, where the scheme's eligibility criteria, application procedures, approval process, disbursement arrangements, controls and audit requirements are to be finalised, according to the Sporting Tribune. Associations and confederations will be watching those details closely, since conditions on spending and reporting will shape how flexibly the money can be used.
Illustration: Officials looking at plans for a new grassroots football training centre.
Final approval would then come at the 77th FIFA Congress in March 2027, the same congress at which Infantino is seeking re-election. If approved, the programme would run across the 2027-2030 cycle, covering the build-up to the next men's World Cup and a full cycle of women's and youth competitions.
Between now and December, expect lobbying over the fine print: which projects qualify, how infrastructure spending is audited, and what happens to associations that fail to meet reporting standards. The headline figures are striking, but the history of development funding suggests the rules matter as much as the totals.
For fans, the practical test will come later, in the form of new pitches, academies and leagues in countries where football infrastructure is thinnest. If the 6.35 billion dollar fund survives the council and the congress intact, its legacy will be measured not in announcements but in the facilities and programmes it leaves behind by 2030.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How much is FIFA proposing to spend on football development?
FIFA will propose a 6.35 billion dollar fund for football development between 2027 and 2030, according to a document dated 14 October 2026 reviewed by The Associated Press.
How much would each member association receive?
Each of FIFA's 211 member associations would receive 25 million dollars, up from the 10 million dollars originally planned, while each of the six continental confederations would receive 99 million dollars.
How would the money be divided?
The proposed funding would be divided into three equal parts: one-third for women's and youth football development, one-third for infrastructure, and one-third for projects, with equal access for women's and youth football within the infrastructure share.
Where does the money come from?
The package would draw more than 3.5 billion dollars from FIFA's financial reserves, based on the commercial success of the expanded 48-team 2026 World Cup, with FIFA expecting revenue for the cycle ending in 2026 of around 15 billion dollars.
When will the proposal be decided?
The plan is to be finalised by the FIFA Council in December 2026, subject to final approval by the 77th FIFA Congress in March 2027, before it can be implemented.
Sources
- ESPN (Associated Press document reviewed), "FIFA to propose association payout bump from $10M to $25M," 14 October 2026.
- Inside the Games, "FIFA prepares major funding boost for football," 15 October 2026.
- Sporting Tribune, "FIFA proposes $3.4bn increase in global football devt funding," 14 October 2026.
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