More than a quarter of employees surveyed said they expected to be late, leave early or miss work due to games.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup could be a win for fans, but new survey suggests this can be a costly challenge for employers.
UKG, a workforce management company, estimates that the tournament could result in at least $17 billion in lost productivity globally, including about $11.7 billion in the United States, as employees take time off, livestream games while working and adjust their viewing schedules.
The survey of 8,000 employees in eight countries found that 37% of employees globally plan to change work arrangements during the competition, while 27% said they may miss work by arriving late, leaving early or skipping work entirely.
The FIFA World Cup is expected to last for 39 days and will be hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Employees also anticipate other workplace disruptions related to the tournament, with 14% saying they plan to secretly livestream games or highlights while at work, according to the survey. A further 22% expected to work when they were tired or exhausted during a match, and 11% admitted they might work while hungover.
“The World Cup is so important because it reflects the challenges organizations face every day: work in frontline organizations changes hourly, and static plans create execution gaps,” Suresh Vittal, chief product officer at UKG, said in a statement.
Among the countries surveyed, Germany is expected to face a World Cup-related productivity loss of about $1.34 billion, while the United Kingdom could face losses of about $912 million. Australia, Canada, France, Mexico and the Netherlands also participated in the study.
Research also suggests the World Cup could create retention problems for employers. Nearly one in five employees surveyed said they would consider looking for a new job if their work schedule negatively impacted their ability to attend games.
Managers themselves can also create scheduling challenges. The survey showed that supervisors were significantly more likely than non-executives to request time off or request flexibility in their schedules during the World Cup.
