That's interesting. Both Sony and Emirates' deals were coming to an end anyways, so Samsung and Qatar Airways were probably gonna out bid for the sponsorship rights anyways. 

Both companies are just attempting to gain moral goodwill

FIFA's name is far more positive than toxic in most places around the world

True, even Qatar Airways has been accused of treating its staff horribly. And more importantly, Qatar Airways wouldn't want their biggest compeitor (Emirates) to be advertising all over their country's world cup.

Emirates has too...

But the Qatar world cup is going to be built by near-slave labour. Doha is already being built like that. I spent a month doing an internship there and out of my hotel window I could see the 20 busses waiting to take all the labourers back to their camps at night

I don't normally take moral stances, but this really does appaul me

UEFA Champions League sponsorship is about 75 million per year.
This deal was 280 million for 8 years, so 35 million per year.

Good move, Fifa is nothing but a joke now. Sony can use that money for other things.

Yes, unfortunately labourers being treated like slaves is a problem all over the Gulf states. Its the same in the UAE, although labourers have more rights in the UAE and there are more laws to protect them. Nevertheless, government owned contruction companies don't follow the rules so in cities like Dubai, you still have massive labour camps filled with hundreads of thousands of workers living in the most horrible conditions. 

Now is Microsoft's chance to gain control of Europe and rule with an iron fist.

Wow, Fifa really that corrupt? I don't follow soccer at all so I wouldn't know.

What would an MS FIFA sponsorship bring to European sales prospects?

EA would still have the license to the actual video game. As others have said, UEFA Champions League is the main event in football right now.