FIFA to pay Manchester United nearly £6m after Ugarte suffers horror knee injury at World Cup

Manuel Ugarte will miss around nine months of football after suffering a serious knee injury during Uruguay’s 1-0 defeat to Spain at the 2026 World Cup, and Manchester United stand to receive close to £6 million in compensation through FIFA’s Club Protection Programme.

The Manchester United midfielder was stretchered off the pitch following a tackle attempt in what proved to be Uruguay’s final game of the tournament. The injury has been classified by FIFA as a “temporary total disablement”, the threshold that activates the Club Protection Programme.

Under the programme’s terms, FIFA covers the player’s contracted club salary for the full duration of the injury lay-off. With Ugarte earning £120,000 per week at Old Trafford — a figure that aligns precisely with the programme’s weekly salary cap — and a projected absence of nine months, the total compensation owed to United approaches £6 million.

The Club Protection Programme was introduced to address clubs’ reluctance to release players for international duty, and was described at its launch as a “landmark moment” in strengthening the relationship between clubs and national associations. The current iteration of the programme runs until the end of 2026, keeping Manchester United fully eligible for its financial provisions.

The timing carries some significance for United, who are in the midst of a significant summer rebuild. The club are managing the departure of veteran midfielder Casemiro while looking to build on the upturn in form that followed Michael Carrick’s appointment. The FIFA compensation, while no substitute for having a fit Ugarte available, could provide a modest boost to the club’s transfer budget as they navigate the window.