The 2026 World Cup group stage concludes on June 27 with six matches across Groups J, K, and L. Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Harry Kane all take the pitch one final time before the knockout rounds begin.
Crypto’s World Cup moment
Kraken became the first cryptocurrency exchange to officially partner with FIFA for a World Cup, a deal announced on June 9. The designation as Official Crypto Exchange Supporter of the tournament is the kind of mainstream validation the industry has been chasing for years.
FIFA Collect, the organization’s digital collectibles platform, migrated to a custom Layer-1 blockchain powered by Avalanche. The previous infrastructure ran on Algorand. The new setup handles NFT-style digital assets and ticketing solutions for fans attending matches across North America.
Fan tokens and prediction markets are surging
