Global soccer's governing body FIFA has stepped up its commercial preparations for the 2025 Club World Cup (CWC) by expanding its existing tie-up with Qatar Airways, and adding that brand as a competition sponsor.
Through the deal, the company becomes the official airline partner of the upcoming CWC, set to include 32 teams and take place in the US between June 14 and July 13.
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FIFA's original deal with Qatar Airways was unveiled in 2017, and it was most recently extended in late 2023, to run through all major national team tournaments until 2030.
The agreement also follows on from FIFA expanding a commercial deal with Chinese tech giant Lenovo to include the CWC, late last month, with other competition sponsors – at the time of writing – including credit card giant Visa, Bank of America, Coca-Cola (who FIFA had initially been in dispute with, over sponsoring the tournament), AB InBev, and Hisense.
Qatar Airways, meanwhile, is no stranger to high-profile soccer tie-ups, outside its FIFA agreement – the airline is currently the principal sponsor of French league champions Paris Saint-Germain, in a deal running through 2027-28, and also has a partnership with European soccer's UEFA, covering its elite Champions League (through 2029-30).
GlobalData Sport has valued the brand's tie-up with UEFA at over $550 million across six seasons.
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By GlobalDataQatar Airways also sponsors Italian side Inter Milan – both that team and PSG will take part in the CWC.
Now, through this deal, FIFA has said Qatar Airways will feature prominently around the branding for the CWC, and that it will also be "offering fans exclusive experiences at the tournament."
In terms of broadcast coverage of the CWC, which has been substantially expanded for this edition (and has also changed to a quadrennial model instead of being an annual tournament), subscription streaming service DAZN has a global rights deal in place, and over the last few months has been working to secure sublicensing tie-ups in a wide range of markets.
