US tax rules may cut Spain’s $50m World Cup earnings by 30% – Report

Spain could lose as much as 30 per cent of the estimated $50 million prize money it earned for winning the 2026 FIFA World Cup due to United States federal tax laws, according to reports.

Under US tax regulations, income generated from activities carried out within the country is generally taxable. Payments made to non-resident foreign athletes are typically subject to a 30 per cent federal withholding tax unless a tax treaty or another exemption applies.

Spain secured the 2026 FIFA World Cup title after defeating Argentina 1-0 in the final at the New York New Jersey Stadium on Sunday, July 19.

FIFA has announced that the tournament winners will receive $34 million from its record $871 million prize pool for the expanded 48-team competition.

Reacting to the possible tax deduction, Republican Congressman Tim Burchett of Tennessee criticised the policy during an interview with Fox News on Tuesday.

“I think it’s a rip-off,” Burchett said. “I’m not a fan of it, but Americans have to do it. American professional athletes do it, so they knew that when they came over here.”

Burchett argued that imposing such taxes on international athletes sends the wrong signal as the United States prepares to host more global sporting events.

“I’m not a big fan of the IRS,” he said. “They made that money over here, I guess, but I don’t like all that. We want to encourage these people to come over here and spend their money, and then we take a big chunk of it.

“We’ve got to get a better tax system.”

Offering further insight, social media commentator William Copus, popularly known as The Feedski, explained that previous World Cup hosts typically negotiated broad tax exemptions covering FIFA, national football federations and participating players.

According to him, the United States adopted a different approach.

“While FIFA lobbied hard and eventually secured federal tax exempt status for itself and the national federations under section 501(c) of the tax code, that exemption stops at the federation level. Individual players, coaches, and staff are on their own.

“The default IRS withholding rate for foreign athletes earning income on US soil is 30% at the federal level. On top of that, players face state jock taxes in every state where they played or practiced. New Jersey, where the World Cup final was held, charges up to 10.75% state income tax and notably does not honor international tax treaties, meaning even players from countries with US tax agreements still owe New Jersey.

“California, where several group matches were played, charges 13.3%. Combined, players who spent significant time in high-tax states could face total US tax bills of up to 40% of their tournament earnings before their home country takes its own cut,” he said.

Democratic Congressman Jonathan Jackson of Illinois also faulted the reported tax burden, describing it as a reflection of deeper problems within the US tax system.

“It’s wrong, and that kind of highlights something bigger,” Jackson said.

He described it as “a classic example of what’s wrong with our taxation system,” arguing that corporations should bear a greater share of the tax burden.

“They should be paying the taxes as opposed to having tax loopholes,” he said. “The people, the laborers that are working, they should not have to pay 30% of their income on taxes.”

Republican Congressman Burgess Owens of Utah similarly said the potential 30 per cent tax rate was excessive, even as he praised the United States for successfully staging the World Cup.

“I have such an appreciation for soccer now,” Owens said. “I think it’s going to be a game changer for so many of our kids. And, so, I want to congratulate the president, everyone who made this happen.

“It is what it is here, unfortunately, in our country of taxes.”