World Cup 2026 US-Style Commercial Model Cemented Into FIFA's DNA

Speaking to WFS’s The Pundit’s Seat, Prof Simon Chadwick argues dynamic ticket pricing and record revenues have locked football into a US-style operating model, with Spain, Portugal and Morocco 2030 expected to raise the bar further.

“World Cup 2026 will be remembered as a structural tipping point: a US-style operating model is now programmed into FIFA’s DNA.”

That is the verdict of Simon Chadwick, professor of Sport and Geopolitical Economy at Skema Business School in an interview given to The Pundit’s Seat, the World Football Summit (WFS) blog series, in the aftermath of the tournament.

“It has left me with the impression of having been to Disneyland five weeks in a row,” Chadwick says of the World Cup. “There was lots of excitement, drama, glitz, and glamour, but ultimately, it was an industrialised, commodified experience that lacked authenticity.”

He credits FIFA with democratising access to the tournament through its expansion to 48 teams, giving nations like Cape Verde a stage they would not otherwise have had, and with delivering the record revenues that underpin its promises of trickle-down investment in national associations and grassroots football.

On the other hand, Chadwick argues that “dynamic ticket pricing… is the purest embodiment of the neoliberalisation of football,” and that the World Cup “has fully transitioned into an industrialised product defined by a consumer’s willingness and ability to pay.”

He also warns that “younger generations do not inherently rely on football for identity or entertainment; they engage with gaming, street sports, cinema, music, or fashion.”

Looking ahead, Chadwick expects the model to only intensify. “Moving forward, there will be an expectation of exponential commercial revenue growth across subsequent World Cups,” he says, adding that “FIFA will expect to maintain the revenue levels generated in the United States” at future editions, including Spain, Portugal and Morocco in 2030.

The future of the World Cup, and the wider consequences of its transformation into a premium entertainment product, will be one of the conversations running through WFS Madrid 2026, alongside new governance and ownership models, the commercial growth of the sport in new markets, and the evolution of fan engagement and media.

WFS Madrid 2026 will bring together more than 150 speakers on 15-16 September at La Nave, Madrid, marking the tenth anniversary of World Football Summit.