According to the Daily Sports, former referee Clattenburg revealed that a FIFA World Cup referee earns approximately $60,000 to $70,000 for the entire tournament.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States, Mexico, and Canada is approaching. As usual, referees will be a focal point: fans will scrutinize their decisions in every match, and even with VAR assistance, controversy is difficult to avoid entirely.
FIFA wishes to keep a low profile on this topic as much as possible. Aside from the announced list of tournament referees, there is no official information regarding the contracts signed by referees or the amount they receive for officiating each match.
Despite the lack of transparency, former referee Mark Clattenburg revealed on the podcast "Whistleblowers" how much a referee can earn for officiating in the FIFA World Cup. According to him, referees earn between $60,000 and $70,000 for the entire tournament, which is approximately 51,000 to 61,000 euros.
The figures revealed by Clattenburg come from his earnings during the 2016 European Championship. At that time, the English referee officiated a total of 4 matches, including the final between Portugal and France. Clattenburg added that if a referee does not officiate matches in the later stages of the knockout rounds, their income would be slightly lower, as compensation is calculated per match officiated and increases as the tournament progresses.
Although these figures are from 10 years ago, Clattenburg stated that the amounts have not significantly increased since then. The English referee said, "It's not that much compared to what players earn."
This is not the first time Clattenburg has revealed surprising information. Back in November 2021, he stated that his controversial penalty decision against Pepe for a foul on Fernando Torres in the 2016 Champions League final was to compensate Atlético Madrid because he had previously allowed an offside goal for Real Madrid. However, that penalty eventually hit the post.