FIFA Announces $49 Million Profit In 2007

[Bruce]

FIFA posts profit despite costly legal wrangle
Fri May 30, 2008 12:51pm BST


By Ossian Shine
SYDNEY (Reuters) - World football's governing body FIFA on Friday reported a $49 million (24.8 million pound) profit for 2007, despite settling a costly legal wrangle over sponsorship rights.

FIFA paid Mastercard $90 million in June 2007 as part of a settlement under which the credit card issuer dropped a legal fight to get sponsorship rights for the next two World Cups.

Mastercard had sued FIFA in April 2006, saying it had first refusal to the rights which eventually went to rival Visa International.

Markus Kattner, deputy secretary general, said FIFA's profit was "a very positive result" given the circumstances.

"Overall, 2007 can be considered very successful," he told the assembled members of the congress. "FIFA is in a sound financial position."

The body gathered $882 million in revenue against $833 million in costs. This compared with 2006 figures of $749 million in revenue against expenses of $500 million.

(Editing by Ed Osmond)


© Thomson Reuters 2008 All rights reserved.

[Rockman]

Even if FIFA did not have to pay Mastercard $90 million, they would still be an alarming drop in revenue, that is always troubling.
FIFA's operational cost has sky rocketed and I have no idea why.


Blessed

[Karl]

Even if FIFA did not have to pay Mastercard $90 million, they would still be an alarming drop in revenue, that is always troubling.
FIFA's operational cost has sky rocketed and I have no idea why.


Blessed

Drop in profits?
I thought FIFA made there money in World Cup years...and doled it out in the years between?

Help...please? If FIFA was profitable in years there is no World Cup, could you tell me when FIFA started that trend? 1998 World Cup through present would be good?!
Thanks!

[Rockman]

Well the Mastercard money isn't FIFA's, so there isn't any debating the "drop", I suspect if FIFA was without that huge bill then their profits would still be short of projections.
Same way we view the profits of both years being mindful one is a WC year, we should regarding the operational cost.
Even if we look at it from WC to WC(accounting period of four years), and assume FIFA did not budget enough of windfall profits..,the rise operational cost would still be a concern.



Blessed