World Cup referees could earn up to $100,000 (£75,000) this summer and will receive bonuses if they are retained for the latter stages of the tournament. Premier League duo Michael Oliver and Anthony Taylor have been selected by FIFA and could referee the final if England are not involved.
Referee Earnings in the Premier League
Oliver and Taylor have already earned around £250,000 each this season for officiating Premier League, FA Cup, and UEFA games. Both were selected by FIFA to referee at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar but could receive an even bigger payout this summer if they are kept on for the knockout stages.
Mark Clattenburg Reveals FIFA Payments
Speaking on the Daily Mail’s Whistleblowers podcast earlier this month, former Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg disclosed how much he earned from officiating at major international tournaments. Clattenburg did not referee a World Cup final but was the referee for the Euro 2016 final where Portugal beat France in extra time.
“I will tell you what it was around Russia 2018 because it hasn’t really gone up much,” Clattenburg said. “Everything is always based on a tournament. UEFA started not giving tournament fees but so much per match. So the more successful referees would have earned around €60,000 (£51,800) at Euro 2016, I think, and that was while refereeing the final as well.”
“You got slightly more for the final and the latter stages. In the World Cup, it was around $60,000 (£45,000), it’s never really changed. When you compare that to what’s around in the game, it seems quite low. I think they’ve gone down the route of so much per match, but it works out if you get the final it works out somewhere between $60,000 (£45,000) and $70,000 (£52,000). You get so much a day for your daily allowances as well.”
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