Fifa

Mexico sees tourism boost as 3 mn foreign visitors attend Fifa World Cup

Foreign tourists accounted for about 40% of the 7.5 million total trips to Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey between June 8 and July 12, with the rest made up of domestic travelers

Fifa World Cup final wasn't 'what we dreamed,' says Nike Football chief

For a sportswear and sneaker company like Nike, having its teams fall short of the final means missing out on the windfall generated by fans splurging on merchandise

FIFA's biggest World Cup yet ends with politics and profit in spotlight

More than 15 million people filled stadiums and fan festival areas combined during the length of the tournament, the biggest World Cup by attendance

FIFA World Cup Final 2026: These states declared a school holiday today

Schools and colleges in Kerala, Manipur and Meghalaya will remain closed today after authorities declared a holiday to allow students to watch the FIFA World Cup 2026 final between Argentina and Spain

FIFA World Cup final: Keralam declares holiday for schools, colleges

Kerala has declared a holiday for schools and colleges on July 20, allowing students to stay up and watch the FIFA World Cup final between Argentina and Spain

Delhi govt allows eateries to stay open till 4 am for FIFA World Cup final

Delhi has allowed eateries to remain open till 4 am this weekend for the FIFA World Cup 2026 final, while Bengaluru has extended food service hours and West Bengal has organised live screenings

Sheinbaum, Carney to attend Fifa World Cup final on Trump's invitation

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney will attend Sunday's World Cup final in New Jersey with US President Donald Trump, amid strained regional ties

Fifa expects World Cup final to proceed despite wildfire smoke from Canada

Fifa will not shift Sunday's World Cup final between Spain and Argentina despite wildfire smoke affecting the New York area, with officials expecting air quality to improve before kick-off

How an Italian sculptor created the World Cup trophy that became an icon

Designed by Italian sculptor Silvio Gazzaniga, the iconic FIFA World Cup trophy symbolises struggle, victory and fan jubilation, and remains football's ultimate prize

The politics of image: How the World Cup became a battlefield of symbols

As several scholars have written, a symbol has language. But a symbol also has multivale¬n¬ce. It can mean many things at the same time

Balogun suspension sparks integrity debate despite FIFA, Trump defence

Soccer leaders questioned the World Cup' s integrity on a chaotic and unprecedented day in the event's modern history Monday. The furor centered on a phone call that President Donald Trump made last week to FIFA head Gianni Infantino to make the case that U.S. striker Folarin Balogun should not have been suspended for matchup with Belgium because of a red card in a game last week. FIFA lifted the suspension and cleared Balogun to play. The decision appeared to be the first time since 1962 that punishment for a World Cup offense was suspended in the tournament, increasing scrutiny on Infantino's control of FIFA and his close association with Trump. European soccer body UEFA said FIFA "crossed a red line" and called Sunday's decision by FIFA's disciplinary committee "unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable." Infantino denied having a role in the decision. Trump called it a "horrible" call and took credit for getting FIFA to review the foul, but said he did not demand an ...

Trump asks Fifa to review US player's suspension, striker cleared to play

The reversal of Folarin Balogun's World Cup suspension is highly unusual. It was the first time since 1962 that FIFA has nullified a suspension for a red card received during the World Cup

Fifa deletes more abusive posts during 2026 World Cup than Qatar 2022

The eight teams playing World Cup matches on Thursday are taking part in an International Day for Countering Hate Speech commemoration, with a pre-match exchange of pennants denouncing such language. Captains involved in the Czechia-South Africa, Mexico-South Korea, Switzerland-Bosnia-Herzegovina and Canada-Qatar matches will have pennants reading "We Play Together. We Stand Against Hate" with the wording in English on one side and the teams' native language on the other. FIFA says it has deleted more than 30 million abusive posts and comments since its social media protection service was created before the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. FIFA says it deleted nearly 400,000 negative or abusive posts in the first few days of this World Cup - more than it did in the entirety of the 2022 event. Other stadium activations involving that message are planned during Thursday's matches.

Fifa World Cup 2026: Counter-drone systems deployed at all US match venues

Giuliani said all 78 World Cup matches in the United States, along with fan festivals in every host city, will be protected by counter-drone systems throughout the tournament

Fifa World Cup 2026 exposes growing global prediction market rift

The World Cup could generate roughly $3 billion in additional wagers and drive as much as $10 billion in betting volume across sports-betting and prediction-market platforms, according to analysts

Brands hit goal as Fifa-themed offerings spark a surge in consumer sales

FIFA World Cup 2026 fever is boosting sales of jerseys, TVs and fan merchandise as brands tap into rising football enthusiasm across India

FIFA says fans in concourses caused empty-seat appearance during matches

FIFA on Friday blamed the empty seats during the World Cup match between South Korea and the Czech Republic in Guadalajara on fans who watched from the concourses. There were many visible empty spots at the 45,664-capacity Guadalajara Stadium, with sections in the middle of the stands showing many unoccupied spaces and with other empty seats scattered around the venue. The announced attendance was 44,985 - including FIFA President Gianni Infantino. "Official attendance figures reflect the number of tickets scanned and spectators present within the stadium footprint, rather than visual assessments of seating occupancy at any given moment during the match," FIFA said, adding that it works closely with stadium authorities and ticketing teams to ensure all published figures are based on verified operational data. "Please note that, during last night's match in Guadalajara, several ticketed fans could be seen standing in concourses rather than staying in their assigned seats throughout t

Fifa World Cup's lesson for finance: Don't trust predictions too much

A London-based strategist's model has correctly predicted the last three Fifa World Cup winners and now identifies the Netherlands as a surprise contender for the 2026 title despite low odds

Best of BS Opinion: E85 policy push needs a coherent transport roadmap

From India's biofuel push and FIFA's commercial priorities to pressure on the rupee, shifts in the global arms market and Malayalam cinema's evolution, here are today's key opinion pieces

FIFA's own goals: Revenue maximisation is tarnishing sporting values

Ticket prices for the final stand at over $7,500, more than four times the price of the 2022 final