FIFA and World Cup 2026
World Cup 2026
Every four years, billions of people watch the FIFA World Cup, captivated by the spectacle of the most popular sport in the world. But while the game happens on the field, action also happens behind the scenes in boardrooms and legal departments that focus on how FIFA protects its brand, generates revenue through licensing, and enforces compliance standards.
In World Cup 2026, games will occur in three countries (USA, Canada, and Mexico) and 16 host cities. It will be the first time since 1994 that the USA has hosted the World Cup, and the first time that Canada has been a host. Previous World Cups featured 32 nations competing, but in 2026, 48 teams will participate, which is the largest group of nations to ever compete for the prize to be World Champion. The nations will split into 12 groups of 4 where the top 2 and the 8 best third place teams will advance to the knockout stage. The inclusion of more nations will only intensify the competition and raise the unpredictability of the tournament (Valverde, 2024).
Emilio Garcia Silvero
Football integrity is more important now than ever. Emilio García Silvero is the Chief Legal and Compliance Officer of FIFA (the Fédération Internationale de Football Association), where he leads FIFA’s legal and compliance operations globally. Mr. Garcia is originally from Spain, and studied law at the University of Extremadura and other universities in Spain and France (Wikipedia, n.d.). He started his career as the Spanish Football Federation's Legal Director, where he oversaw disciplinary and regulatory issues. Later, he joined UEFA, where he worked closely with the European football leadership as Head of Disciplinary and Integrity Services (ISC, n.d.). In 2018, Mr. Garcia joined FIFA in Zurich and later transitioned to FIFA’s new office in Miami, Florida as part of FIFA’s global expansion. He is currently in charge of FIFA's efforts to update and expand FIFA’s legal and compliance efforts (Olympics, n.d.).
In this behind the scenes clip from FIFA, Mr. Garcia explained how the expansion of FIFA outside its corporate offices in Switzerland to Miami signifies the extent to which football has become a global sport (FIFA, 2024).
Corruption in FIFA and Reform
In 2015, FIFA faced a major crisis when the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) charged several high-ranking officials for corruption. The DOJ investigation exposed a global network of bribery and money laundering, leading to the arrests of over a dozen officials (Conn, 2015). Allegations included bribery connected to the awarding of the World Cups in 2018 and 2022 to Russia and Qatar, respectively, and that seven FIFA executives had allegedly received over $150 million in bribes (Rollin, n.d.).
In his conversation with us, Mr. Garcia acknowledged that FIFA’s reputation was deeply damaged by this scandal, emphasized that the organization had no choice but to reform, and described the scandal as a turning point for FIFA. Starting in 2016, FIFA created an official compliance division with the mission of monitoring financial transactions, enforcing ethical behavior, and preventing similar misbehavior from ever happening again, and later hired Mr. Garcia to help lead those efforts (FIFA, n.d.). Mr. Garcia told us the compliance team's work now includes tracking how FIFA's funds are distributed globally, monitoring sponsorship contracts, and providing compliance support to FIFA’s 211 member associations.
Compliance
As part of its global compliance efforts, FIFA held its fifth Compliance Summit in Rio de Janeiro in April 2024, bringing together representatives from all 211 member associations. During the summit, FIFA introduced the second edition of its Compliance handbook, which provides clear and practical guidance to help national football federations in establishing or enhancing their internal compliance processes (FIFA, 2024). Mr. Garcia explained that the summit served not only to present the new handbook but also to encourage meaningful discussion among members about shared risks, financial integrity, and ethical procedures.
As World Cup 2026 approaches, one of the challenges FIFA faces in relation to compliance and general legal issues is that every location where games will be held - states in the US and Mexico, and provinces in Canada - have their own laws. So, compliance efforts can become complex.
FIFA’s Intellectual Property Guidelines
FIFA's Intellectual Property Guideline demonstrate how seriously it takes brand protection both legally and strategically. According to these Guidelines, individuals and businesses are not permitted to use FIFA's name, emblem, mascot, slogans, or even certain terms like "World Cup." For instance, FIFA trademarks or terms like "FIFA World Cup 2026™" cannot be shown on items or advertisements (FIFA, n.d.) or be used by anybody other than official partners. Legal action may result from utilizing FIFA's brand without authorization, even for events like giveaways or watch parties (FIFA, n.d.). FIFA makes it clear that legal action may be taken in cases of misuse, and they encourage the public to report any violations. This strategy helps them maintain control of and protect their brand, and make sure fans know who’s officially connected to them.
FIFA has registered many trademarks with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, including "FIFA," "FIFA World Cup," and "World Cup 2026." According to The IP Center, FIFA has registered more than 98 trademarks related to the 2026 World Cup, including variations such as “UNITED 2026” and “MUNDIAL 2026” (IP Center). These trademarks cover an extensive range of products and services from apparel and footwear to digital media, broadcasting rights and retail services showing the organization’s purpose to enforce protection across nearly every commercial category. Images of FIFA's registered trademarks for "FIFA" and “World Cup 2026 in the United States are shown below.
FIFA makes significant investments in enforcing its intellectual property rights to protect the integrity of its brand and those of its commercial partners. According to Mr. Garcia, trademark registration is only the first step; the real challenge is monitoring and preventing unauthorized use across global markets, especially during major tournaments like the upcoming World Cup. We asked Mr. Garcia how FIFA protects its IP.
Match-Fixing and Anti-Doping Efforts
Match-fixing is a major worldwide danger to the integrity of sports. In confirmed cases, FIFA imposes severe punishments, often including lifetime bans for players, clubs, and referees involved (FIFA, n.d.). FIFA has made combating doping a top priority in addition to its efforts to stop match-fixing. FIFA continues to enforce strict testing and compliance standards to maintain athlete health and ensure fair competition at all levels of the game (FIFA, n.d.).
Mr. Garcia explained that doping not only undermines fair competition but also endangers the health of athletes, and because doping accusations are based on biological evidence, they are usually easier to investigate than match-fixing allegations.
FIFA Revenues and Licensing
While ticket sales and broadcasting rights are well known revenue sources, licensing contributes a big portion of FIFA’s income. FIFA partners with companies that want to use FIFA’s trademarks and logos on official gear, video games, and other products. A well-known example is the long-time deal with EA Sports, which used the FIFA name in its popular soccer video game series for years (Brown, 2015). These licensing agreements bring in hundreds of millions of dollars and are backed by legal contracts that help protect the FIFA brand from being misused (Brown, 2015; Gerst, 2015; and FIFA Publications, n.d.).
FIFA is a non-profit organization, so most of the revenue it generates from tournaments like the men’s and women’s World Cups, licensing agreements, and other business activities will be reinvested into its various initiatives to develop the game, host tournaments internationally, and support other global efforts (What FIFA Does, n.d.).
Final Reflection
Interviewing Mr. Garcia provided a much deeper understanding of how global football is controlled behind the scenes. FIFA is not just the organizer of the World Cup, but it’s also a complex legal, financial, and compliance-driven organization. What stood out most was how serious FIFA is about rebuilding trust after the 2015 corruption scandal. Its commitment to reform, global expansion, and transparency especially through things like the Compliance Handbook shows a lot of growth. Mr Garcia’s journey through different countries and organizations served as a reminder that careers whether in law or sports can both be international and meaningful. This experience changed our perspective on sports and added a better understanding of how law and passion all come together at the top level of international football.
References
Conn, D. (2015, May 27). Fifa officials arrested on corruption charges as part of US investigation. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/may/27/several-top-fifa-officials-arrested
Brown, R. (2015, July 9). How does FIFA make money? Investopedia. https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/070915/how-does-fifa-make-money.as
FIFA. (n.d.). Brand Protection. Inside FIFA. https://inside.fifa.com/tournament-organisation/brand-protection
Tech and Media Law. (n.d.). FIFA’s trademark protection strategy. https://techandmedialaw.com/fifa-trademark-protection
FIFA. (n.d.). Compliance programme. Inside FIFA. https://inside.fifa.com/legal/compliance/compliance-program
FIFA. (2024, April 10). Gianni Infantino says strategy 'crucial' as new FIFA Compliance Handbook is published. Inside FIFA. https://inside.fifa.com/news/compliance-summit-handbook-rio-de-janeiro-brazil-infantino
The IP Center. (2024, May 17). Navigating FIFA’s World Cup trademarks minefield. https://theipcenter.com/2024/05/navigating-fifas-world-cup-trademarks/
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Trademark registration no. 7141334 – FIFA. https://tsdr.uspto.gov
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Trademark application no. 97504595 – World Cup 2026. https://tsdr.uspto.gov
FIFA. (n.d.). Financial governance. Inside FIFA. https://inside.fifa.com/en/organisation/divisions/finances
Skwarek, J. (2023, May 10). FIFA ends decades-long video game partnership with EA Sports. Tech & Media Law. https://techandmedialaw.com/fifa-ends-partnership-ea-sports
Olympics. (n.d.). Emilio García Silvero. Athlete365. https://www.olympics.com/athlete365/yournetwork/entourage/emilio-garcia-silvero-a365
Wikipedia. (n.d.). Emilio García Silvero. https://gl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emilio_Garc%C3%ADa_Silvero
ISC. (n.d.). Emilio Garcia – International Sports Convention. https://internationalsportsconvention.com/speakers/emilio-garcia-2/
Gerstl, Gil (2015). FIFA – Glorifying the Game or Rotting the World’s Biggest Sport? Technology and Operations Management. https://d3.harvard.edu/platform-rctom/submission/fifa-glorifying-the-game-or-rotting-the-worlds-biggest-sport/
What FIFA Does (n.d.). https://inside.fifa.com/all-topics
Valverde, I. (2024, October 16). 50 Facts About the World Cup 2026. Facts.net. https://facts.net/lifestyle/sports/50-facts-about-world-cup-2026/
FIFA Publications (n.d.). Revenue from licensing rights. https://publications.fifa.com/en/annual-report-2022/finances/finance/notes-2022/3-revenue-from-licensing-rights-2022/
Rollin, J. (n.d.) 2015 FIFA corruption scandal. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/event/2015-FIFA-corruption-scandal