The Business of the FIFA World Cup

List of Contributors

1. Introduction

Simon Chadwick, Paul Widdop, and Christos Anagnostopoulos 

2. A Brief History of the FIFA World Cup as a Business

Alex G. Gillet and Kevin D. Tenant 

3. Bidding and Hosting Decisions

Kamilla Swart and Rauf Mammadov 

4. Competition Design of the World Cup

Travis Richardson, Tim Pawlowski, and Georgios Nalbantis 

5. An Integrity System Framework for the Governance of the Football World Cups

Géraldine Zeimers and Bram Constandt 

6. Environment and Sustainability of FIFA World Cups

Madeleine Orr, Jessica R. Murfree, Austin Anahory, and Rony Epelbaum Edwabne 

7. Rethinking Football Innovation: Why Women’s Football Can Lead the Next Era

Sascha L. Schmidt, Niclas Höppner, and Yannik Rosenlehner 

8. Finance of the FIFA World Cup

Daniel Plumley and Rob Wilson 

9. Planning and Organising FIFA World Cups

Sebastian Merten and Mathieu Winand 

10. Planning, Sourcing, and Managing Resources for FIFA World Cups

Michael M. Goldman 

11. Mental Health, Decision-Making, and the World Cup Spotlight: Refereeing Under Pressure

Tom Webb, Robyn Bate, and Joshua Gray

12. Engaging Fans at FIFA World Cups

André Bühler

13. Managing Risk and Security

Jan Andre Lee Ludvigsen and Alexander J. Bond

14. Marketing, Sponsorship, and Merchandising

Argyro Elisavet Manoli, Michael Anagnostou, and Lingling Liu

15. Broadcasting and the FIFA World Cup: Satellite Technology, Privatisation, and Digitalisation

Gerard A. Akindes

16. The Business of the FIFA World Cup: Digital and Social Media

Renan Petersen-Wagner

17. Sport and Statecraft as the Lasting Legacies of Qatar 2022

Marko Begović and Thomas Ross Griffin

18. Legal Challenges for the 2026 and 2027 FIFA World Cups

Ilias Bantekas and Salman Al-Ansari

19. The FIFA World Cup from an AFC Perspective

Jailan El-Bous

20. CAF's World Cup Ambitions: Strategy and Participation in 2026 and 2027

Richard Wanjohi

21. The World Gets Concacaf’d

David Kilpatrick

22. CONMEBOL and the Future of South American Football: Men’s and Women’s Development Ahead of the 2026–2027 World Cups

Nahuel Ivan Faedo

23. FIFA World Cups, Civic Engagement, and the Development of Football in Oceania

Richard Keith Wright, Andrew Grainger, Aaron Jefferson, and Melody Johnston

24. Power, Governance, and Welfare in the FIFA World Cup: Europe’s Central Role

Cem Tinaz and Georgios Georgiadis

25. The Challenges and Opportunities Posed by a Multi-Host Model: FIFA’s North American Push

Kristina Hoff and Nicholas Burton

26. Looking Ahead to the 2027 Women’s World Cup

Seyedeh Khadijeh Rezatab Azgomi (Sufiya) and Simon Chadwick

Index

Biography

Simon Chadwick is a researcher, writer, academic, consultant, advisor, and speaker whose work focuses on leading and managing in complex environments. His areas of expertise are in policy and strategy and international and global markets, as well as business and marketing. Chadwick has three decades of experience working in the global sport, event, and cultural industries, particularly in an Afro-Eurasian setting. He is a professor of AfroEurasian sport and advises several clients from across the world of sport. 

Paul Widdop is a reader in sport management at Manchester Metropolitan University, UK. His research examines how social and economic networks shape the organisation, consumption, and cultural meaning of sport. He works at the intersection of sociology, economics, and geography, with a particular focus on social network analysis and the structural mechanisms that underpin inequality, participation, and value in sport. 

Christos Anagnostopoulos is the founder, director, and chairholder of the UNESCO Chair on Governance and Social Responsibility in Sport and a core member of UNESCO’s Fit for Life Knowledge and Innovation Network. He is a faculty member at Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar, and visiting professor II at Molde University College, Norway, and an adjunct professor at the University of New Brunswick, Canada. He consults with organisations, including Generation Amazing Foundation, Cyprus Sport Organization, Sport Integrity Global Alliance, and Qatar Olympic Committee, and is an elected executive board member of the World Association for Sport Management.