Every team at the 2026 FIFA World Cup has now played at least once. The Athletic has responded by doing what sports media does best: ranking all 48 of them, top to bottom, based on opening-match performance.

France sits at No. 1. Argentina holds No. 2. England, riding a dominant 4-0 demolition of Croatia under Thomas Tuchel, checks in at No. 3. Meanwhile, the crypto side of the tournament is generating its own scoreboard, with prediction markets tied to the World Cup processing over $2 billion since the first whistle.

The rankings and what they tell us

The Athletic’s updated power rankings, published June 17, reflect a tournament still finding its legs. The more interesting story is England at No. 3. A 4-0 win over Croatia is the kind of statement result that reshuffles early-tournament narratives. Thomas Tuchel’s side looked sharp, clinical, and, most importantly, like a team that actually wants to be there.

Germany, for its part, drew attention for defensive vulnerabilities despite early results.

48 teams, $2 billion in prediction volume

This World Cup is the first to feature 48 teams, a 50% expansion from the 32-team format that had been standard since 1998. More teams means more games, more uncertainty, and, crucially, more surface area for speculation.

Crypto prediction markets have capitalized on exactly that dynamic. Over $2 billion in volume has been processed through platforms where users wager on match outcomes, group-stage results, and outright tournament winners.

Kraken, the major cryptocurrency exchange, was named FIFA’s Official Crypto Exchange Supporter ahead of the tournament. Fan tokens and Solana-based meme coins themed around national teams have also seen a surge in trading activity since the tournament kicked off. These assets tend to be highly speculative and closely tied to on-field performance, which means a surprise result, like England’s 4-0 rout, can move token prices in ways that mirror the emotional swings of actual football fans.

What this means for investors

For traders watching fan tokens and tournament-adjacent crypto assets, the key variable is engagement rather than fundamentals. These tokens don’t have revenue models or protocol fees. A team’s elimination can crater its associated token overnight.

The broader implication is more durable. Prediction markets processing this kind of volume during a single sporting event validate the thesis that decentralized speculation is a genuine use case for blockchain infrastructure. The risk, as always, is regulatory. Prediction markets operate in a legal gray zone in several jurisdictions, and a high-profile event like the World Cup tends to attract regulatory attention. Any enforcement action during the tournament could spook participants and compress volumes quickly.