FIFA is considering blowing up the World Cup bracket again. Spain, Portugal, and Morocco have been confirmed as co-hosts for 2030, but the governing body hasn’t decided whether to stick with 48 teams or push all the way to 64. For context, the current format uses 32 teams, the 2026 edition in North America will already be the first to expand to 48, and now there’s talk of going even bigger just four years later.

Crypto’s World Cup playbook is already taking shape

Kraken made history on June 9, 2026 by becoming the first crypto exchange to land an official sponsorship role with the World Cup, serving as the Crypto Exchange Supporter for the 2026 tournament.

Fan tokens have emerged as the primary intersection point between crypto and international football. The Chiliz and Socios.com platform, which powers fan tokens for national teams and major clubs, has seen its associated token market capitalization reach $3.8 billion in 2025. Projections suggest that number could balloon to roughly $19 billion by 2034, a nearly 5x increase driven largely by major tournament cycles.

What this means for investors

The fan token market is currently a niche within a niche. At $3.8 billion in market cap, it’s roughly the size of a mid-tier DeFi protocol. A nearly 5x projected increase to $19 billion by 2034 would put fan tokens in the same conversation as some Layer 2 networks.

Investors should watch Chiliz (CHZ) as the primary infrastructure play in this space. The token underpins the Socios platform and tends to move with major sporting calendar events. Historical patterns show price appreciation in the months leading up to World Cup and Champions League cycles, followed by post-event corrections.

No official top-tier crypto sponsorship currently exists at FIFA’s highest global partner level, which suggests the governing body is still testing the waters rather than diving in fully.