Do clubs get paid when their players join the national team, and what if they get injured?
Yes. Through FIFA's Club Benefits Programme, clubs are paid a daily fee for every player they release to the World Cup. After the 2022 tournament FIFA distributed $209 million to clubs. A separate Club Protection Programme insures clubs if a player gets injured on national-team duty.
- 1FIFA's Club Benefits Programme pays clubs a daily amount for each player released to the World Cup[1]
- 2For the 2022 World Cup, FIFA distributed about $209 million to clubs worldwide[1]
- 3Payments go to every club that developed or employed a called-up player, not just the big ones[1]
- 4The separate Club Protection Programme insures a player's wages if they are injured on national duty[2]
- 5That insurance covers up to a daily wage cap per player, for a limited number of days[2]
When the World Cup starts, clubs lose their best players for over a month — and FIFA runs two programmes that send money back to them.
How are clubs paid for releasing players?
Through the Club Benefits Programme, FIFA pays each club a fixed daily fee for every player it releases, for every day they're at the tournament. After 2022 this pot was about $209 million, spread across hundreds of clubs worldwide.
What happens if a player gets injured?
The Club Protection Programme is an insurance scheme: if a player is hurt on national-team duty, it reimburses the club for his wages during recovery, up to a daily cap and a maximum number of days.
Why does this exist?
Clubs pay the salaries while national teams get the glory, so injuries on international duty can cost a club a fortune — though clubs argue the payments still don't match a top player's real value.
There is no clean American parallel, because the NFL and NBA don't lend players to a separate national-team event mid-career. The closest idea is the Olympics: think of how the NBA navigates sending stars to the Games, including insuring their guaranteed contracts against injury. FIFA's system formalizes that — a release fee plus injury insurance — so clubs aren't simply handing over their most valuable assets for free.
- FIFA — FIFA Club Benefits Programme(accessed 2026-06-13)
- FIFA — FIFA Club Protection Programme(accessed 2026-06-13)