FIFA
FIFA is expected to select On Location as its primary hospitality sales agency for the 2026 World Cup in North America, multiple sources told SBJ. The global governing body for soccer has chosen the Endeavor-owned firm over fellow RFP finalist Beyond Hospitality, the sources said. FIFA and On Location declined to comment.
Based on a similar World Cup RFP obtained by SBJ, it is believed On Location would also be the hospitality sales agency for the 2027 Women’s World Cup. FIFA is expected to decide among three hosting bids -- a joint U.S.-Mexico Bid, a Brazilian bid and a joint bid from Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands -- at its annual congress next month in Thailand.
On Location could also be the hospitality provider for the 2025 Club World Cup, an expanded 32-team tournament scheduled to be held in the U.S. next summer.
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On Location, which the NFL launched in 2015 to sell hospitality packages for the Super Bowl, brings robust experience operating in North America. It is newer to the global market but now holds the rights for the two largest international sporting events. The company, which Endeavor acquired in 2020, won the hospitality rights in 2021 for the 2024 Paris, 2026 Milan-Cortina and 2028 L.A. Olympic Games. The company’s combined guarantee for the three Olympic Games is $1.3B.
The global network of sub-distributors for specific regions that On Location established for the 2024 Paris Olympics could serve as a model for how it might approach the World Cup.
Beyond Hospitality, launched by Jaime Byrom in 2023 with 30% backing from Qatari consultancy Aspire Katara Hospitality, was the de facto incumbent for the World Cup hospitality rights. Match Hospitality AG, which Byrom founded in 2007, oversaw the FIFA Hospitality Programme for every World Cup since 2010, and Byrom's relationship with the sport’s global governing body dates to the 1986 World Cup in Mexico.
In its 2022 annual report, FIFA said it expects to generate record revenue of $3.1B from hospitality rights and ticket sales during the 2023-2026 World Cup cycle, most of which would be for the men’s World Cup. The global governing body pointed to the "attractive hospitality features already imbedded in [North America’s] modern stadiums" as a key to the projected 226% increase from $949M during the 2019-2022 cycle.
