The Finalissima between Spain and Argentina is not only looking for a stadium, but also to protect a multi-million dollar business. With three weeks to go before the match on March 27, the conflict that forced Qatar to suspend all activities in the country has left in the air an economic package that, according to industry estimates, could reach 60 million euros between television rights, organisation and payments to the participating teams.
The original plan was to stage the match as part of the Qatar Football Festival, a programme of international matches scheduled between March 26 and 31 that included several friendlies in addition to the Spain-Argentina match. The calendar included matches such as Egypt-Saudi Arabia, Qatar-Serbia and Spain-Egypt on March 30, all part of a global economic agreement financed by the host country.
Just for playing in the Finalissima, both the Real Federacion Española de Futbol (RFEF) and the Asociacion del Futbol Argentino (AFA) were guaranteed income estimated to be between six and ten million euros per team. This figure was in addition to the additional friendlies, which in tournaments of this type usually generate payments of around two to four million per team.
The big block of business is in the audiovisual rights and commercial exploitation of the entire festival. The television sale of all the matches, together with the advertising and sponsorship agreements linked to the event, places the value of the package at around 20 or 30 million euros.
Many aspects to consider
To this volume must be added the logistics that Qatar assumed as organiser: travel, accommodation, security and television production of the matches, an expenditure that could exceed 10 or 15 million euros. In total, the festival designed around the Finalissima moves a figure that is around 40 or 60 million.
This is the economic framework that is now in limbo. Finding a new venue for the Spain-Argentina match involves more than just choosing a stadium: the country that steps in will have to put the same financial backing on the table as Qatar to ensure that the business does not collapse.
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