Spain's extra-time victory over Argentina in Sunday's World Cup final did more than deliver the country's second men's World Cup title — it also secured a record $51 million payday, the largest championship prize FIFA has ever awarded, as part of an unprecedented $871 million distributed across all 48 participating nations in the tournament.

Runner-up Argentina, which fell 1-0 to Spain after Ferran Torres scored in the 106th minute, will take home $34 million for reaching the final, according to figures confirmed by FIFA following the match. The gap between the two figures represents a $17 million swing between winning and losing soccer's biggest prize, underscoring just how much value FIFA has placed on the tournament's final stages.

The payouts mark a significant jump from the amounts FIFA originally announced in December, when the governing body set the champion's prize at $50 million and the runner-up's at $33 million. Both figures rose by roughly $1 million after FIFA added more than $100 million in additional funding in April, following lobbying from several European federations seeking help covering the higher travel and lodging costs associated with a tournament staged across three host countries — the United States, Canada and Mexico.

A record-breaking prize pool

This year's tournament, the first to feature an expanded 48-team format and 104 total matches, carried the largest prize pool in World Cup........

© International Business Times