The 2026 World Cup will become the most lucrative tournament in football history, with FIFA set to distribute a record £650 million across the competing nations, with £520 million set aside as dedicated prize money.

Everyone knows that England’s very best footballers are earning eye-watering sums at club level: Hundreds of thousands in wages per week, the image rights deals, the sponsorship arrangements and so on. But while the nation obsesses over what Harry Kane earns at Bayern Munich or what Jude Bellingham pockets at Real Madrid, the financial structure that governs international football is rarely put under the microscope.

How does pay actually work when a player pulls on an England shirt? What happens to the prize money FIFA hands out? Are the bonuses as generous as you might expect? And what do the players actually do with the money they earn from representing their country?

For a generation of English footballers whose combined weekly wage bill runs into the tens of millions, the answers are quite surprising:

Base Match Fees, Bonuses and How it Works

The FA doesn’t publicly disclose its player payment structure, but it’s understood that England players earn a base appearance fee of roughly £2,000 per game for representing the national side. That figure is, of course, dwarfed by what they earn week-to-week at their clubs, but the relatively modest amount is deliberate. Representing your country is treated as a matter of honour, not a payday.

The real money comes in the form of performance-related bonuses negotiated directly between the FA and the players’ group, and these scale significantly depending on how far England progress. For the 2026 tournament, reports from The Mirror suggest players could earn up to £500,000 each if England go all the way and lift the trophy in New Jersey on the 19th of July – not bad for five weeks’ work.

Thomas Tuchel, meanwhile, is said to be in line for a multi-million-pound bonus of his own if he delivers England’s first World Cup since 1966. FIFA pays prize money directly to the national federation rather than the players, so it’s the FA’s responsibility to distribute funds, covering staff costs, facilities and squad bonuses all from the same pot.

Commercial Rewards

Beyond official FA payments, a World Cup can be enormously valuable to players commercially. Brands and sponsors frequently hold back major advertising campaigns until the squad announcement is confirmed, at which point the chosen players see an immediate uplift in their market value and endorsement opportunities.

For household names like Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice, tournament performances can trigger lucrative new deals or activation clauses already built into existing sponsorship contracts. A deep run, or an iconic moment in front of a global audience can be worth considerably more in commercial terms than any bonus the FA could provide.

What England Players Got for the 2022 World Cup

Much like the 2026 World Cup, England players were reportedly in line for £500,000 apiece had they won the tournament in Qatar. It was a significant increase on the £215,000 on offer for the 2018 campaign in Russia. But 2018’s semi-final, their best finish at a World Cup since ‘66, was likely what prompted the FA to further incentivise their players.

England’s exit in the quarter-finals at the hands of France meant the full bonus pot went unclaimed, with the payments scaling down according to how far the team progresses.

Do England Players Donate Their Fees to Charity?

This is perhaps the least-known and most admirable aspect of England’s financial setup.

Since 2007, every England men’s player has donated their match fees in full to the England Footballers’ Foundation (EFF), rather than keeping the money personally. The tradition was established by a players’ committee that included David Beckham, Gary Neville and John Terry, and it has continued ever since.

By 2018, the collective total donated through the EFF had surpassed £5 million, distributed across causes including UNICEF, Help for Heroes, Cancer Research UK and The Bobby Moore Fund. When Kylian Mbappe received widespread praise during the 2018 World Cup for donating his match fees to charity, Neville was quick to point out on social media that England’s players had been doing exactly that for over a decade.

The EFF has since become one of football’s quieter but most consistent examples of collective generosity, a tradition that will continue in North America this summer, regardless of how far England go.

Useful World Cup links

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Liverpool are in advanced talks to secure their first signing of the summer transfer window, looking to bring back one of their former players.

The Reds are preparing for a new era at Anfield with an agreement in place for Andoni Iraola to join the club as their manager.

Iraola left Bournemouth this summer after guiding them into Europe, and he now looks set to replace Arne Slot, who was sacked last month.

After a disappointing 2025/26 season, the Liverpool hierarchy will likely want to back their new manager with reinforcements.

Thankfully for them, Iraola has shown he is capable of working with what he’s got, with Bournemouth regularly having to sell their key players.

Liverpool in Advanced Transfer Talks

According to a report from Anfield Watch, Liverpool are in advanced talks to sign Blackburn midfielder Patrik Farkas as their first addition of the summer transfer window.

Farkas is set to leave Blackburn at the end of the month due to his contract expiring, and discussions are now ongoing over a two-year deal at Anfield.

The Hungary U19 international left Liverpool four years ago after spending two years in the club’s academy.

His younger brother Erik currently plays for Liverpool, catching the eye at under-18 level during the 2025-2026 season.

Farkas looks set to become the fifth Hungarian on the books at Liverpool, joining his younger brother, Milos Kerkez, Dominik Szoboszlai, and Armin Pecsi.

Liverpool Need Senior Additions on Top

Although signing young talent for the future will be important for Liverpool going forward, they also need to ensure they strengthen their senior squad.

It was a disappointing 2025/2026 season for the Merseyside club, even though they managed to qualify for the Champions League.

Liverpool finished in fifth place, which thankfully was given as an extra Champions League place for the Premier League, avoiding it being a completely disastrous campaign.

Improvements are needed on and off the pitch, especially after a disappointing summer transfer window last year, in hindsight, with multiple players failing to make an impact.

With the New York Knicks making their long-awaited return to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999, and having already laid down a statement win in Game 1 against Victor Wembenyama’s San Antonio Spurs 95-105, we asked AI who it thinks are the 10 greatest players to put on the Big Apple jersey.

10

Dick Barnett

Entry number 10 on this list is a basketball Hall of Famer held in the highest esteem. The shooting guard started his career in the league at Syracuse Nationals (later renamed the Philadelphia 76ers) as the fourth pick in the 1959 NBA Draft following an incredibly proficient college stint at Tennessee A&I State College, where he won three NAIA basketball championships under the tutelage of John McLendon, often attributed as the founder of the fast break and full-court press.

Joining the Knicks in 1965 from the Los Angeles Lakers after averaging solid points per game returns, that trade turned out to be a stroke of genius for his new team, with a 23.1 scoring average in his first season for “Fall Back Baby.” The early ’70s were when it really started to come together in New York, culminating in NBA championship wins in 1970 and again in 1973.

With both those wins coming against the Lakers, the LA-based franchise must have wondered why they ever let the No. 12 leave.

9

Earl Monroe

NBA fans of a certain era will need no introduction to the next man to grace this list. Earl “The Pearl” Monroe was something of a unique entity in the ’70s. Known for an impossible-to-guard spin move that left defenders questioning their profession, the Baltimore Bullets took to their 1968 rookie of the year instantly.

When its hated rivals, the New York Knicks, came calling with an offer the future NBA champion couldn’t resist in 1971, he took that rookie-season productivity to a whole new level, helping secure the 1973 NBA Championship alongside Dick Barnett.

In 2021, the four-time NBA All-Star was selected for the NBA 75th-anniversary team. His showstopping, high-scoring output, and impact on the league, made his inclusion a nailed-on certainty.

8

Bill Bradley

Bill Bradley’s high-IQ plays were an essential cog in the ever-present 1970 team that won two championships, perhaps even more so than the aforementioned stars.

“Dollar Bill” wasn’t flashy, but what he gave to the Knicks in terms of structure and court awareness was worth its weight in gold. His nickname belies that fact, not because he spent his money on fast cars or nights out, but because he was always a sure thing when he played at Madison Square Garden.

Accomplished long before he entered the NBA scene, he captained the US Olympic basketball team to glory at Tokyo 1964. He even put his league aspirations on hold to attend Oxford University, where he studied economics and history, and won a EuroLeague title on the side with Olimpia Milano.

The two-time champion and 1973 NBA All-Star’s No. 24 jersey now proudly hangs in the rafters of the arena where he achieved so much.

7

Carmelo Anthony

Now switching our attention to a more modern player, watching Carmelo “Melo” Anthony was a joy. Making his way into the league in 2003 in a draft class that had no equal (LeBron James, Chris Bosh, Dwayne Wade), he left his mark in the NBA with 28,289 points, placing him just outside the top 10 on the all-time scoring list.

A decorated Olympian, he also played a contributing factor in three consecutive gold medals for Team USA in 2008, 2012, and 2016. While he never obtained a ring during his 19-year NBA career, his stats speak for themselves.

6

Dave DeBusschere

An all-around athlete, DeBusschere was always destined for greatness, but that greatness could have been found outside the NBA court if things had turned out differently.

Long before Michael Jordan took up Major League Baseball at the peak of his prowess, another man had already made a similar decision, choosing to focus his future on basketball. A talented pitcher in his own right, DeBusschere signed for the Chicago White Sox in 1962, with his last appearance coming a year later.

Around this time, the NBA came calling for this defensive 6-foot-6 powerhouse, who averaged 11.0 rebounds per game across his illustrious career with the Detroit Pistons and New York Knicks from 1962 to 1974, making him a vital cog in the Knicks’ championship-winning team.

5

Bernard King

A menace on the fast break, Bernard King was the model of what a small forward should strive to be.

A 4x NBA All-Star who consistently shot above 50% from the field in an era more focused on strength and size than on scoring productivity, King helped change the game of basketball in the 1980s.

Inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012, few could argue against that. 19,655 points (22.5 PPG) and a scoring champion in the 1985 season with a dizzying 32.9 average. It begs the question: just how much greater would his productivity have been in the modern era?

4

Jalen Brunson

A few may think it’s premature to add Jalen Brunson to this list as an active NBA player, but when you consider the transformative journey the New York franchise has been on since Brunson arrived, it makes a whole lot of sense.

Once seen as the basement dwellers of the NBA, the league’s landscape began to change when “The Brunson Burner” came to town. From finishing 11th in the East in 2021-22 to consecutive postseason appearances, the landscape in NY has changed, thanks in no small part to Brunson’s stat line. 2025-26 was proof of that, with 26.0 points, 6.8 assists, and 3.3 rebounds per game.

And having made their way to the NBA Finals off the back of a convincing sweep of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Brunson and co. will be hoping to guide the organisation to its first NBA Championship since 1973, a sentence that would have been alien to fans just a short time ago.

3

Willis Reed

Captain, leader, legend. Those are just some of the words that would best describe Willis Reed.

“The Captain” was a certified great who lifted his franchise to greatness. Spending the entirety of his NBA career with the New York Knicks, dominant and combative in equal measure, he won the NBA Rookie of the Year despite being selected in the second round of the NBA Draft of 1964.

Despite being a glass operative, his scoring average in that first year in the league was seventh overall with an even better rebound proficiency (14.7 rpg). In the 1969-70 season, it all clicked together. The Knicks, having recruited well, enjoyed a franchise-record 60-game record.

But it is that famous Game 7 of the 1970 NBA Finals on the 8th of May 1970 that Reed will be most remembered for. The regular-season MVP, who had injured himself in Game 5 and missed Game 6 with a thigh injury, was expected to be out of action for the final match. Reed had other ideas and produced one of the NBA’s most iconic moments as he took to the court to nullify Wilt Chamberlain’s output and secure the Knicks’ first NBA championship.

2

Walt Frazier

Widely regarded as one of the greatest point guards in Knicks’ history, Walt “Clyde” Frazier’s performance in the aforementioned Game 7 was as legendary as Willis Reed’s shock appearance.

Carrying the brunt of the weight on the night, Frazier delivered 36 points, 19 assists, and seven rebounds. A floor general who could defend the rim and score at will, he was a monstrous talent that many opponents, including that legendary LA Lakers team, had little answer for.

Making seven consecutive NBA All-Defensive First Team appearances from 1969-1975, he would repeat the feat once more in 1973. His legacy as one of the greats was secured when he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1987.

1

Patrick Ewing

Who else could have been number one on this list?

The first overall pick of the NBA Draft of 1985 lived up to every one of his sizeable billing. An 11-time NBA All-Star, the center spent 15 of his 17 NBA seasons as a certified Knicks fan-favourite.

Leading the Knicks to the NBA Finals in the ’90s (1994 and 1999), during the era of Shaquille O’Neal and Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls, he gave New Yorkers hope that anything was possible.

Often listed as one of the best players to never win an NBA ring, Ewing proved that a legacy can be cemented even without one. Despite leaving the Knicks in 2000, his record as the franchise’s all-time leader in points, rebounds, steals, and blocks has stood the test of time.