The FIFA World Cup disrupted US workplaces and may have shaved as much as $11.7 billion off the country's productivity as millions of workers adjusted their schedules to watch matches, according to a report.
NDTV Profit reported -- citing UKG -- that the tournament’s global impact was nearly $17 billion, due to higher absenteeism, late arrivals and early departures during the competition.
In addition, the data from workplace platform Envoy showed highest work disruption coming the day after the United States men’s team was eliminated from the tournament. Office attendance dropped 26 per cent on July 7, while employee entries dropped 11.5 per cent.
That attendance drop was nearly 10 times larger than the post-Super Bowl attendance dip the company observed earlier this year.
Visitor traffic -- including client meetings, interviews and vendor appointments -- dropped 32 per cent, suggesting firms postponed meetings rather than closing offices outright.
Once the host nation was knocked out, workplace attendance gradually picked up closer to normal even as the tournament entered the quarterfinal stage.
As the World Cup final approaches, analysts said the Monday-after impact is likely to be far lower than "Knockout Tuesday" because the US is no longer in the tournament.
Spain or Argentina will claim ultimate glory in front of a crowd of over 80,000 at New York New Jersey Stadium as they compete to be crowned FIFA World Cup™ champions.
FIFA has announced Slovenian official Slavko Vincic has been appointed to referee the 2026 FIFA World Cup final between Argentina and Spain at the New Jersey Stadium on Monday (IST).
World Cup winners in 2010, Spain are appearing in their second final, while Argentina are looking to lift the trophy for a fourth time following triumphs in 1978, 1986 and 2022 – also appearing in the 1930, 1990 and 2014 finals.
—IANS
