Referees at this summer’s World Cup could earn up to $100,000 (£75,000), with large bonuses paid on top if they are chosen to officiate at the latter stages of the tournament.
The Times reported that the figures, which are around double what referees were paid at the 2014 World Cup, reflect Fifa’s intentions to have the top officials in use at the tournament.
Premier League duo Michael Oliver and Anthony Taylor have both been chosen as referees.
Jarred Gillett, who also officiates in the English top flight, will also be at the World Cup - held across the US, Canada and Mexico - as a specialist VAR official.
Oliver and Taylor would need to referee the final to receive the biggest payday. That however would require England failing to get that far, as Fifa would not appoint an English referee to officiate a match involving the Three Lions.
Fifa selected 52 referees for this summer’s football spectacular alongside 88 assistant referees and 30 VAR officials - although their number has dropped by one after Somalian referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan was denied entry at the US border and turned back to Istanbul, where he had travelled from.
Last year the EFL told clubs that top-flight officials earn on average between £170,000 and £180,000, with a base salary of £72,000 to £148,000 based on experience and seniority levels with match fees and bonuses, determined by performance, paid on top of those figures. Even the most junior Premier League officials earn around £125,000.
