This past winter, before Fox had even televised one FIFA World Cup match, word leaked that the rights holder for every World Cup from the 2015 women’s event up to and through the 2022 men’s tournament in Qatar was being handed another cycle of tournaments, without going to an open bid process.
Speculation—and well placed corroborations—led many in the industry to believe Fox was gifted the TV rights to the 2026 FIFA World Cup as a make good for FIFA agreeing to move the 2022 World Cup in Qatar to winter from the event’s traditional summer timeslot.
The move is the most controversial decision FIFA has ever made regarding the World Cup, and it’s the direct reason—along with all the money, and the paper trail connecting unscrupulous higher-ups in FIFA to all the money—the entire organization is crumbling from within.
