Qatar Airways was the highest-paying sponsor in FIFA’s top category in the last cycle, joined by Qatar Energy.

Qatar Airways and Visa have renewed their partnerships with FIFA, extending their agreements to cover the global football federation’s major men’s, women’s, and youth events, SportBusiness revealed.

The announcement was anticipated as FIFA’s list of partners included only five brands, despite stating they had five going into the Women’s World Cup, which ended with Spain’s victory over England.

Alongside the two renewed agreements, Coca-Cola, Adidas, Wanda, and Hyundai have existing agreements with FIFA that extend to the end of the 2030 men’s World Cup.

Both Qatar Airways and Visa were added to the list of FIFA Partners on the FIFA.com website devoted to the Women’s World Cup last week, although no official announcement has been made regarding these deals.

It is still unclear whether the agreements have been extended until 2026 or until 2030.

FIFA is said to recognise a growing interest among brands to align with the 2026 men’s World Cup, co-hosted by the US, Mexico, and Canada. However, the hosts for the 2030 event and the next Women’s World Cup in 2027 are yet to be announced.

Visa’s presence was notable on pitch-side advertising boards throughout the Women’s World Cup, stemming from its independent ‘Women’s Football Partner’ agreement with FIFA that grants sponsorship rights at all FIFA women’s events from 2023 to 2026.

This agreement follows Visa’s previous eight-year partnership, which expired at the end of 2022.

Visa and FIFA agreed to a sponsorship agreement in 2007 for the major event beginning with the 2010 World Cup. Since then, the stock price of the major credit card company has successfully increased as it competes with Master Card.

Each World Cup tournament, FIFA receives $85 million from Visa. 

SportBusiness reported that representatives from Visa met with FIFA at the Women’s World Cup last week, culminating in the finalisation of a top-tier deal.

Meanwhile, Qatar Airways also enjoyed significant branding during the tournament, suggesting an extension of its last FIFA Partner deal, which expired after the 2022 men’s World Cup.

“Over the last 6 years, Qatar Airways has become a valued and trusted Partner to FIFA. In light of this, Qatar Airways is visible at this year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023 as a FIFA Partner holding key promotion and activation rights at a local and international level, which reflects not only the airline’s long-standing relationship with FIFA but also its strong commitment to supporting the women’s game worldwide,” a FIFA spokesperson stated in response to an inquiry from SportBusiness.

Qatar Airways was the highest-paying sponsor in FIFA’s top category in the last cycle, joined by Qatar Energy.

However, following the country’s hosting of last year’s showpiece event, there were questions about whether the Qatari brands would continue their association.

The airline announced a $1.2 billion profit over the last fiscal year, partly spurred by Qatar’s hosting of the 2022 men’s World Cup, which attracted 3.4 million visitors.

Qatar Airways has since become a Global Sponsor of Formula 1, replacing Emirates.

In addition to its recent motorsport deal, Qatar Airways’ other sponsorships include shirt sponsorship of Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain, an Official Sponsor deal with the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets, a Principal Partner deal with the Indian Premier League franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore, and a soon-to-expire five-year sleeve sponsorship deal with Bayern Munich.

As the country’s most global export, Qatar Airways is poised to continue its growth, with various agreements and negotiations underscoring its prominence in the international sports sponsorship landscape.

Behind the sponsorships

FIFA offers businesses and brands the chance to support the World Cup, in addition to international and regional competitions, as official sponsors. 

According to data, these sponsors provide FIFA almost $1.60 billion for the World Cup. Each year, the FIFA’s official sponsors contribute between $25 and $50 million. FIFA receives $15 to $25 million in exchange for sponsoring the major event.

One of the first and largest sponsors of FIFA and the World Cup is the German sportswear giant Adidas, which began sponsoring the major tournament in 1970 and has been with FIFA ever since.

Adidas signed the contract renewal in 2013, extending it through 2030. The 2014 World Cup brought about a surge in the firm shares. According to projected figures, Adidas will provide $100 million to FIFA for each World Cup event through 2030.