Soccer is big. And this tournament is huge. But what exactly is the World Cup? Know these numbers, and you’ll be able to hang in any conversation.
1930
The year of the first tournament, attended by 13 teams and won by host nation Uruguay. The event has since been held every four years, with the exceptions being 1942 and 1946, both canceled due to World War II.
6
The number of regional soccer confederations, each sending a predetermined number of teams to the World Cup based on performance in their respective qualifying tournaments. The confederations are:
- Asian Football Confederation (AFC)
- Confederation of African Football (CAF)
- Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF)
- South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL)
- Oceania Football Confederation (OFC)
- Union of European Football Associations (UEFA)
Here is a more detailed article on how it all works.
As you’ll see below, in 2022, Oceania did not send a representative. (When it comes to soccer, Australia apparently plays in Asia!)
32
The number of countries that participated in each edition of the tournament from 1998 – 2022. In each event, the teams were divided into eight groups of four. Within each group, each team played the other three one time, earning three points for a win, one for a tie, and zero for a loss. The two teams with the most points in each group then advanced to the 16-team knockout stage, a single-elimination tournament that determined the champion. Here were the groups for the 2022 event (in Qatar).
Group A
Qatar, Ecuador, Senegal, Netherlands
Group B
England, Iran, United States, Wales
Group C
Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Poland
Group D
France, Australia, Denmark, Tunisia
Group E
Spain, Costa Rica, Germany, Japan
Group F
Belgium, Canada, Morocco, Croatia
Group G
Brazil, Serbia, Switzerland, Cameroon
Group H
Portugal, Ghana, Uruguay, South Korea
48
The number of teams that will participate in the World Cup as of the 2026 edition.
8
The number of countries that have won at least one World Cup. The list includes Brazil (5), Germany (4), Italy (4), Argentina (3), France (2), Uruguay (2), England (1), and Spain (1).
3
The number of times non-European, non-South American representatives have made the semifinals. The outliers were the US in 1930, South Korea in 2002, and Morocco in 2022.
42 million
The prize money in US dollars paid to the winner of the tournament in addition to the $1.5 million that goes to all teams for preparation costs. Smaller performance-based payouts are also made to the other teams.
6.44 billion
The revenue target in US dollars from 2019-2022 for FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association), the corrupt governing body of world soccer based in Zurich, Switzerland, that decides which country will host each tournament.
425 million
The amount in US dollars that Fox paid FIFA for the US English-language broadcast rights of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. Of course, FIFA cuts similar—if not as lucrative—deals with various entities across the globe.
5 billion
A crude estimate regarding the number of people who were expected to watch at least part of the 2022 tournament.
And a bonus number: 0. That’s the number of times I’ve kicked a soccer ball in the past 20 years. Which reminds me—what is the world cup? has another answer—sports bar time!
