GENEVA, June 23 (AP): The 2018 World Cup has cost Russia billions of dollars to stage and will make FIFA hundreds of millions in profit.
Still, the big numbers that are routine for major sports events are unlikely to set World Cup records.
Russia's official budget of 678 billion rubles ($11.6 billion) spent on projects for the tournament is less than the estimated $15 billion spent by Brazil on the 2014 World Cup.
The budget to meet President Vladimir Putin's pledge to showcase a warmer, more open Russia excludes some transport projects the tournament relies on. It also looks a bargain compared to the $51 billion bill for the 2014 Winter Olympics that extended from Sochi into nearby mountains.
FIFA will top $6 billion for the four-year commercial cycle tied to this World Cup, beating its $5.656 billion target. The marquee tournament is overwhelmingly the main source of FIFA income.
That target, however, was conservative compared to $5.72 billion of overall income booked by FIFA in the Brazilian World Cup period.
Sponsors have been harder to sign since the May 2015 revelation of American and Swiss federal investigations of bribery rocked FIFA and dozens of international soccer leaders.
Here's a look at some of the financial numbers: Life was relatively good for FIFA and Russia in December 2010 when hosting rights were awarded.
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