Toronto’s Front Street has been buzzing. The city is hosting World Cup matches for the first time in Canada’s history, and the energy is real. But alongside the flags and the fan fests, a quieter transformation is happening: the 2026 FIFA World Cup has become, almost without fanfare, one of the most deeply crypto-integrated sporting events ever held.
Canada is the only one of the three co-hosts, alongside the United States and Mexico, experiencing this tournament for the first time.
Kraken, Avalanche, Chainlink: the blockchain lineup behind the World Cup
On June 9, 2026, FIFA announced Kraken as its first-ever Official Crypto Exchange Supporter for the World Cup. The partnership is designed to expand fan engagement and accelerate crypto adoption across the host nations.
FIFA tapped Avalanche to power its FIFA Collect digital collectibles platform and to underpin a new blockchain-based ticketing system. The ticketing angle is particularly significant: ticket scalping and fraud have plagued major sporting events for decades, and FIFA’s pivot to on-chain ticketing represents a genuine attempt to solve a structural problem using blockchain infrastructure.
