The happiness provider
The most successful World Cup in history was a triumph for everyone with a vote.
Two days before the final, Gianni Infantino stood in Trump Tower and explained what his organization is. “The official happiness provider to humanity,” he said, before thanking the American president for the “greatest human, social and cultural event that mankind has ever witnessed.” Then he listed the numbers that proved it: full stadiums, record ratings.
He did not list the other numbers. A seat at the final cost up to $8,680. Following a team from the group stage to the final cost roughly five times what the same journey cost in Qatar, which was itself the most expensive World Cup ever staged. In a late refinement, FIFA sold tickets to the pre-final press conference, converting even the questions into inventory. In the host cities Infantino was celebrating, ICE ran enforcement sweeps through the group stage; Human Rights Watch counted thirteen deaths in immigration custody since January. Happiness is a gated product.
The gate is the business model. FIFA expects roughly $8.9 billion from this tournament alone, the largest payday in its history, most of it from broadcasters, sponsors, and the hospitality tiers that priced ordinary supporters out of the stadiums they were watching on television. Of that sum, $727 million flows back to the 48 participating federations as prize money. FIFA presents this as generosity, up 50 percent from Qatar. It is less than a tenth of the tournament’s revenue. The remarkable fact about Infantino’s electorate is not that it can be bought. It is how cheaply.
His re-election next year is described as a formality. The word is wrong. Formalities are empty rituals; this one has content. The 211 federations that vote are the same 211 that receive the distributions, and they will do what every compliant board does for a CEO who has hit his targets: approve the bonus. The happiness provider has delivered, to everyone entitled to a share. The fans were never shareholders, only the product margin.