FIFA named Kraken the Official Crypto Exchange Supporter of the 2026 World Cup on June 9. The partnership covers fan engagement activations across the 48-team tournament.
FIFA named Kraken the Official Crypto Exchange Supporter of the 2026 World Cup on June 9, two days before the tournament's opening matches. The partnership covers fan engagement activations across the 48-team event, which runs from June 11 to July 19 across 16 cities in Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
This is the largest World Cup ever staged. Forty-eight teams, up from 32, mean more matches and more broadcast hours. Kraken plans to roll out activations designed to introduce football fans in North America and Europe to crypto assets. Multi-city countdown concerts kicked off on June 10, creating a built-in audience of millions before the first match.
Kraken is not the first crypto platform to work with football. Chiliz, the blockchain behind fan tokens, has operated in the sport for years. Its CHZ token powers a marketplace where fans buy tokens tied to national teams and clubs, including ARG and POR. There is also a prediction market angle. An April deal established ADI Predictstreet as the official prediction market platform for the 2026 tournament.
Kraken securing this deal over rivals signals confidence in its regulatory positioning across North America and Europe, the two regions FIFA explicitly highlighted in the partnership announcement. The exchange holds licenses in the U.S., the U.K., Ireland, Spain, Italy, and the Netherlands – a compliance footprint that matters when a counterparty like FIFA needs certainty across three host countries.
The tournament itself is the largest World Cup ever staged. Forty-eight teams mean more matches, more broadcast hours, and more opportunities for Kraken's brand to appear on digital boards and in-venue screens across 16 stadiums. FIFA expects 5.5 million ticketed attendees, with billions more watching from home.
For Kraken, the payoff is less about direct user acquisition during the tournament and more about long-term brand positioning. The World Cup sponsorship anchors Kraken as a mainstream financial services brand, not just a crypto-native player. The exchange reported $1.7 billion in revenue in 2024, up 127% from the prior year, and has expanded its spot and derivatives markets in Europe ahead of the 2026 MiCA rollout.
The opening match kicks off June 11 in Mexico City. Kraken's first set of activations goes live the same day.
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