Football
9th Oct 2025
How Much Do Football Referees Earn in International Matches?
International referees are the world cup are selected to officiate in major tournaments and other international friendly matches by FIFA or related confederations. FIFA only pay salaries/match fee to selected referees for FIFA orgnized tournaments such as FIFA World Cup, Confederation Cup, Club World Cup or youth level tournaments such as Under-20 world cup etc.
International referees usually earn in per-match fee and related allownces. They do not have long-term professional contracts with FIFA or confederations. Instead their appointments are made based on their performances in domestic leagues/cup competitions.
Federations usually recommend best performing referees from their country to FIFA, UEFA or other confederarions who then appoint referees for international matches.
FIFA selects and appoints referees for the World Cup through its Referees Committee, choosing from elite officials on the FIFA International List based on National association recommendation, performances in domestic League/cups, and fitness evaluations. FIFA pay selected referees for events such as the World Cup, Confed Cup, Club World Cup. All match fees, travel, and accommodation costs are fully covered by FIFA’s operations budget.
For all other tournaments and international matches taking place under the confederations banners such as (UEFA, AFC, CAF, CONMEBOL), referees are paid by the regional confederation and not by FIFA. for example UEFA is responsible to appoint and compensate referees for UEFA Euro, Nations League, European world cup qualifiers etc.
For international friendly matches host federation pay referee salary/match fee, travel expenses, and daily allowances. Neutral referees can be appointed by their travel cost, match fee and allownces are provided by host FA.
| Competition | Referee Match Fee | Assistant Referee Fee | VAR Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| FIFA World Cup (Final tournament) | $5,000 – $10,000 per match | $2,500 – $4,000 | $3,000 |
| UEFA Euro / UEFA Nations League | €5,000 – €10,000 per match | €2,500 – €4,000 | €3,000 |
| World Cup Qualifiers | $2,000 – $2,500 | $1,000 – $1,500 | $1,500 |
| AFCON / Asian Cup / Copa América | $1,000 – $2,000 | $700 – $1,200 | $1,000 |
| International Friendlies | $2,000 – $5,000 | $1,500 – $3,000 | $1,800 |
| Youth / U-20 World Cup | $1,000 – $1,500 | $700 – $1,000 | $800 |
For example Premier League referees are the highest paid while La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A also pay their lineup of referees very handsomly. Sure its not as good as elite footballers, but compared to other major sports, football referees make good money comparitively.
