The International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) earned at least $6 million from the resale of digital tickets for the 2026 World Cup. The sports organization retains 5% from each transaction on its own NFT platform, FIFA Collect, and transfers the accumulated share to a major exchange, according to analysts at Chainalysis.
Experts analyzed the flow of funds since May 2025. During this period, $24 million in payments from collectors passed through the platform’s main wallet. The scheme offered fans an alternative way to access the stadium. FIFA randomly distributed tickets to those who applied, and purchasing a digital item granted the right to buy a seat directly. According to FIFA Collect, over 100,000 people attended matches this way.
How the FIFA NFT Platform Works
Chainalysis examined the smart contracts of FIFA Collect on the Avalanche network and identified a universal address through which primary sales, secondary transactions, and seller payouts occur. A commission in favor of the federation is automatically deducted from each transaction.
The wallet owner periodically transfers FIFA’s accumulated share to an intermediary address, and from there to a major exchange. Experts estimate this chain leads to conversion into fiat currency.
The organization’s ability to gather a significant sum was aided by the activity of collectors themselves. Analysts noted that both newcomers and experienced users are more likely to resell digital items than to keep them.
Who Bought and Where the Money Came From
The primary demand came from fans of countries whose teams qualified: they accounted for $17.6 million compared to $6.6 million from the rest of the world. Most of the sum came from wallets with a transaction history—attracting a new audience unfamiliar with cryptocurrency to the platform was only partially successful, Chainalysis highlighted.
The entry threshold was high for formal reasons: access to tickets required identity and source of funds verification, and each application was reviewed manually. Analysts believe this selection process deterred unscrupulous participants, resulting in a negligible share of dubious funds on FIFA Collect.
Meanwhile, activity on open prediction markets was different. Since January 2026, trading volume for the 2026 World Cup reached $20 billion, with $5.7 billion occurring during the five-week tournament. Approximately 400,000 wallets were involved.
Around 3,700 addresses had prior interactions with suspicious counterparties. The largest source was the exchange HTX, which faced sanctions from the UK in late May and subsequently from the EU. At least $5.4 million was transferred from it to participant wallets. Another $2 million was linked to fraudulent schemes, and over $800,000 to stolen funds.
In October 2025, FIFA faced the threat of a criminal case in Switzerland over its NFT initiatives.
