The 2026 FIFA World Cup hasn’t kicked off yet, but California is already winning. Seven national teams, including the US, Australia, and Switzerland, have chosen the Golden State as their tournament home base, turning the stretch from San Diego to the Bay Area into the most concentrated corridor of World Cup activity on the continent.
For crypto, the story is arguably just as big. Kraken was named FIFA’s official crypto exchange supporter on June 9, and the tournament’s underlying infrastructure leans on blockchain rails for both digital collectibles and ticketing.
California’s World Cup footprint
The US Men’s National Team opens the tournament on June 12 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, facing Paraguay in what will be one of the most scrutinized home openers in American soccer history. SoFi, the $5B venue that hosted the Super Bowl in 2022, anchors the Southern California side of the World Cup map.
Up north, the San Francisco Bay Area will host six matches at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara. That slate includes games featuring both Switzerland and Australia, two teams that have planted deep roots in the region.
