Two Individuals Paid $50,000 Each to Watch All World Cup Matches

New York. The excitement of the Football World Cup is increasing day by day, with six matches being played daily until the end of the group stage. In such a busy schedule, watching all the matches regularly becomes a full-time job. For Kevin Akoto and Austin Franklin, this statement has proven to be absolutely true, as they are being paid a salary of $50,000 each for watching all 104 matches of the World Cup. It has been more than a week since they started working as Fox One's 'Chief World Cup Watchers'.

In the middle of New York's famous Times Square, a specially built glass room has been set up for them, where the general public and fans can observe them from outside. Inside the attractive room, there are comfortable chairs, a brown leather sofa, two large television screens, and a foosball table.

The place, filled with various football merchandise and snacks, looks like any 20-year-old football fan would imagine. Kevin, a cook from Florida, and Austin, an influencer from Philadelphia, got this unique opportunity by surpassing thousands of competitors, where they have to watch the games and also create content for the fans.

As the World Cup will continue for many more weeks, both are trying to balance their match-watching duties. Kevin said that they are a bit tired from watching the matches continuously and are learning to adapt to the situation, while Austin compared it to summer camp, saying they don't even realize when the days pass.

According to Austin, this is like a marathon, where watching football while sitting on the sofa seems easy, but continuous watching can be tiring, so he tries to get his eight hours of sleep. Fortunately, they do not have to sleep inside the same glass box, which allows them to go out for rest after their duty is over.

During this period, they have had the opportunity to witness some historic moments firsthand. While eating Argentinian barbecue, they watched the thrilling scene of Lionel Messi breaking the all-time record for most goals in the World Cup. Another benefit of this job is getting to eat various dishes from the countries where the matches are being played.

In between matches, they also get a chance to interact with thousands of Brazilian and Norwegian fans who flock to Times Square, celebrating their famous Viking festival. Austin says that meeting fans from all over the world and talking about football and culture is his favorite part. Sometimes they get so engrossed in the game that they even forget that thousands of people are watching them in the middle of Times Square, he shares.

Both have different opinions on predicting who will win this World Cup. Kevin claims that Spain will win the golden trophy, although due to his ancestral roots, he also supports the USA and Ghana.

On the other hand, Austin is wearing a Norway jersey. Due to Manchester City striker Erling Haaland and Norway's recent performance, he sees a possibility of Norway winning the World Cup.

However, the opinion of outside viewers regarding this job is divided. According to 52-year-old Norwegian fan Eimund Lyland and his 15-year-old daughter Camille, watching all 104 matches continuously without any privacy might be a bit too much. Similarly, 18-year-old Matthew Mendez believes it is best to enjoy the World Cup sitting with friends or family.

But 20-year-old Miguel Sanchez is amazed by their luck. He says, 'This is even better than going to the stadium; it's really great to earn money by watching the World Cup.'