According to CoinMeta, reports indicate that the 2026 World Cup generated a transaction volume of $20 billion in the prediction market on blockchain, as well as $24 million in transactions for digital collectibles. Over 400,000 wallets participated in blockchain betting throughout the event. Although Chainalysis identified $5.4 million in capital flows originating from sanctioned sources (mainly Huobi / HTX), less than 1% of the betting wallets showed any illegal connections, indicating that most of the activities on the chain were driven by legitimate fans. The official “FIFA Collect” platform of FIFA provided match tickets to 100,000 fans through digital assets, and strict KYC protocols minimized their exposure to illegal funds. This World Cup was one of the largest in history, with 6.8 million viewers and advertising expenditures of $10.5 billion, and 66 million viewers in the United States.