World Cup madness costs global economy $17 billion

The FIFA World Cup is not only a source of emotion and joy for football fans, it also has an impact on the global economy. As millions of people around the world are busy watching stars like Messi, Neymar, Mbappe, Yamal play in the 2026 World Cup, productivity at work has been greatly affected. Especially in the United States, one of the host countries of the tournament, the World Cup has caused significant losses in business and work.

A report by human resources and workforce management software company UKG has revealed that around $17 billion or $17 billion in productivity has been lost worldwide due to employee absences, late arrivals to the office and reduced attention to work to watch World Cup matches. The biggest blow has been to the US economy. The country's loss is around $11.7 billion or $1.7 billion, which is equivalent to around 140,000 crore taka in Bangladeshi currency.

Office attendance drops on ‘Knockout Tuesday’

According to UKG, many US workers took time off around important World Cup matches, some arrived late to the office, while others finished work and returned home early.

According to workplace management platform Envoy, the day after the US team was eliminated from the World Cup by Belgium in the last 16 match on July 6, that is, Tuesday, July 7, the day after the US team lost to Belgium in the last 16 match. This absenteeism rate was almost 10 times higher than the day after the Super Bowl final, the most popular sporting event in the US.

Not only did employee attendance drop in the office, but business activities were also affected. The number of client meetings, job interviews and various types of business meetings dropped by about 32 percent on that day. Envoy calls this unusual situation ‘Knockout Tuesday’.

The trend of employee absence from work was especially high on the days of the US team’s matches. However, after the team was eliminated from the tournament, the normal atmosphere in the office gradually began to return.

Alternative measures of large companies

Several large companies have taken proactive measures to minimize the loss of work during the World Cup and avoid additional traffic congestion in host cities. International institutions such as 'JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs and S&P' are allowing employees to work from home on match days.

Meanwhile, Envoy also gave a forecast of what the office attendance rate might be the day after the final. It is not expected that the office absenteeism rate will increase much on Monday, as the United States will not be in the finals of Argentina and Spain. According to the company's forecast, attendance could decrease by a maximum of 1.87 percent compared to a normal Monday, which is close to the day after the Super Bowl.

Impact on the workplace during major sporting events is not new

A Bloomberg analysis said that the impact on the work of employees during major sporting or entertainment events is not new. Previously, changes in workplace attendance and productivity were also seen in various countries during the Olympic Games or the release of the movies 'Barbie' and 'Oppenheimer' in 2023.

However, the extent to which economic productivity in the United States has declined in the run-up to the 2026 World Cup is being considered one of the most significant events in recent history.

Source: NDTV