The 2026 FIFA World Cup has reached its penultimate stage, with France set to face Spain and England drawn against Argentina in what promises to be a blockbuster pair of semifinals.

This is the first World Cup jointly hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, and the first expanded to 48 teams.

Prediction markets are having their Super Bowl moment

Polymarket currently hosts more than 140 active betting markets tied to the tournament as of July 13, 2026. Everything from match outcomes to golden boot winners to corner kick totals is apparently fair game.

According to the latest odds on Polymarket, France is the tournament favorite with a 39% implied probability of lifting the trophy.

A trader operating under the handle “coldsway” lost a staggering $11.6 million across 15 different World Cup positions on Polymarket. That’s not a typo. Nearly $12 million, gone across a handful of football bets on a blockchain-based platform.

Kraken leads the crypto sponsorship push

Kraken was named the Official Crypto Exchange Supporter of FIFA World Cup 2026 back on June 9, a designation that gives the exchange prominent branding across the tournament’s North American and European footprint. Kraken facilitates trading in over 600 tokens.

Fan tokens and oracle infrastructure

Chiliz, operating through its Socios.com platform, is offering fan tokens for national teams on both Solana and Base blockchains. These tokens give holders access to unique experiences and participatory opportunities during the tournament.

Chainlink is providing oracle services for ADI Predictstreet, covering all 104 matches in the tournament. Oracles are the bridges that feed real-world data (like match scores and statistics) into blockchain-based applications.