The World Cup final on Sunday will have a half-time break running between 20 and 25 minutes, longer than the standard 15-minute interval fans are used to. The extension is driven by broadcast and sponsorship demands, which, in 2026, include a growing list of crypto partners that did not exist in previous tournament cycles.
Kraken, Avalanche, and the crypto money flowing into FIFA
On June 9, 2026, Kraken was named the Official Crypto Exchange Supporter of the FIFA World Cup 2026, covering both North America and Europe. That is not a banner ad on a stadium wall. That is a top-tier sponsorship category, the kind previously reserved for banks, telecoms, and soft drink companies.
FIFA also partnered with Avalanche to handle blockchain-based ticketing infrastructure. The system uses Right-to-Ticket tokens, digital collectibles linked directly to match access. In English: your ticket lives on a blockchain, and so does the proof that you own it.
The ticketing angle matters more than it might seem. Sports ticketing has historically been plagued by fraud, scalping, and counterfeit resales. A blockchain-based system does not eliminate all of those problems, but it creates a verifiable chain of ownership that traditional paper or PDF tickets cannot match.
