• The FIFA President spoke at the Saudi-U.S. Investment Forum 2025 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
• FIFA is also targeting USD 1 billion revenue from the FIFA Women’s World Cup in the future.
• Mr Infantino says the FIFA World Cup is a transformative competition watched by five billion people.
The FIFA World Cup 2034 offers huge opportunities for investment in Host Nation Saudi Arabia, FIFA President Gianni Infantino said during the Saudi-U.S. Investment Forum 2025 in the country’s capital Riyadh. Mr Infantino also spoke about the growth of women’s football, saying that FIFA was targeting USD 1 billion revenue for the FIFA Women’s World Cup in the future.
The FIFA President took part in a fireside chat with Richard Attias, Founder and Chairman of the eponymous Richard Attias and Associates and Chairman of the Executive Committee, FII Institute. He appeared with the Official Match Ball for the 32-team FIFA Club World Cup 2025™, which will take place in the United States from 14 June to 13 July 2025 with Saudi Arabian side Al Hilal among the 32 participating teams.
Speaking about the FIFA World Cup, Mr Infantino said: “The opportunities are huge. Football is a game followed by five billion people around the world. We need to find a way to connect these five billion people, because that’s what they are watching: a (FIFA) World Cup, 104 games in one month, 104 Super Bowls in one month.
“A competition like the (FIFA) World Cup is really transformative, not just for a country, and for a region, but really for the entire world. Football is, of course, the world’s number one sport. Five billion people are football fans, or soccer fans, around the world.”
The FIFA World Cup 2034, the first with 48 teams to be held in a single nation, will showcase Saudi Arabia’s rich heritage, dynamic transformation and deep-rooted passion for football. The country also enjoys a growing reputation as a world-class international destination, hosting a number of sporting events, including the inaugural FIFA Series in 2024, the FIFA Club World Cup Saudi Arabia 2023™ and the upcoming 2027 AFC Asian Cup.
The FIFA President explained that countries such as Saudi Arabia could help football fulfil its potential financially. “The global football GDP (gross domestic product) in one year today is around USD 270 billion of which about 70% is produced in Europe,” he said.
Pointing out that the European GDP is much smaller when compared to the global GDP, the FIFA President added: “If the rest of the world, in particular Saudi Arabia or the United States of America, would do just 20% of what Europe does in soccer, we (could reach an amount of over) half a trillion or more of GDP impact (with our sport). The potential for football is huge.”
His message to all investors around the world was a simple one: “Invest in the beautiful game, it will be the best investment you can make!”
