The 2026 FIFA World Cup is barely a week old, and crypto is already one of the tournament’s breakout performers. Across sponsorship deals, prediction markets, and fan token trading, digital assets have woven themselves into the fabric of the world’s most-watched sporting event in ways that would have seemed absurd four years ago.
The expanded 48-team format, spread across 16 host cities in North America, means more matches, more eyeballs, and more surface area for crypto companies to plant their flags.
Kraken makes FIFA history while Avalanche powers the collectibles
Kraken became FIFA’s Official Crypto Exchange Supporter on June 9, 2026. That’s a first. No crypto exchange has ever held that designation at a World Cup.
Meanwhile, Avalanche is quietly running the infrastructure behind FIFA Collect, the tournament’s official NFT and digital collectibles platform. Launched in May 2026, it represents a second act for blockchain-based collectibles after the broader NFT market’s rough 2023-2024 period.
