Spain’s national football team has a simple message for its players heading into the 2026 FIFA World Cup: win or go home empty-handed. Players will receive zero performance bonuses if the team gets knocked out before the quarter-final stage, according to French sports outlet L’Équipe.

A familiar playbook

This isn’t Spain experimenting with a new approach. The federation used the identical bonus structure during Euro 2024, which Spain won. So the logic is straightforward: if the carrot-and-stick worked when they lifted the European Championship trophy, why change the formula?

The 2026 World Cup adds a wrinkle that makes this calculation more interesting. The tournament has expanded to 48 teams, up from 32, and is being co-hosted across the United States, Canada, and Mexico. More teams means more matches, a longer group stage, and theoretically more chances for an upset.

Where crypto enters the pitch

Kraken has been designated as FIFA’s Official Crypto Exchange Supporter for the tournament. That’s a major visibility play for the exchange, placing crypto branding alongside one of the most-watched sporting events on the planet.

Then there’s the fan token angle. Spain maintains a national team fan token, $SNFT, within the Chiliz ecosystem. Fan tokens allow supporters to participate in polls, access exclusive content, and signal allegiance through digital ownership. The Chiliz platform hosts fan tokens for multiple national teams, creating a marketplace where tournament performance can directly influence trading activity.