Luka Modrić just did something no Croatian footballer has ever done. The 40-year-old midfielder was named to Croatia’s squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, making him the first player from the country to appear in five editions of the tournament.
His World Cup journey stretches back two decades. From his debut on June 18, 2006, through to the upcoming tournament, Modrić has accumulated 19 World Cup appearances, captained his nation to a final, and picked up both the Golden Ball and the Bronze Ball along the way.
From pitch to portfolio
In April 2026, CoinW, a crypto exchange, announced Modrić as its global brand ambassador. The timing was not accidental. Major sporting events have a well-documented habit of pulling attention, and attention in crypto tends to translate into trading volume.
Multiple Solana-based meme tokens inspired by the midfielder have emerged in recent weeks. One listing showed a price of approximately $0.0001345 with a market cap of about $114,000. Others have been even smaller, with market caps below $15,000. These are micro-cap tokens that exist primarily because a famous person’s name is attached to them. They are not affiliated with Modrić himself, and they carry all the risk you’d expect from assets that can be created in minutes and abandoned just as quickly.
