The 2026 FIFA World Cup became a watershed moment for blockchain-based prediction markets, generating $20 billion in total volume and drawing more than 400,000 wallets into on-chain betting activity, according to a report from blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis.

The results mark a significant expansion for a sector that first drew mainstream attention during the 2024 U.S. presidential election cycle, when prediction market platforms such as Polymarket recorded billions in trading volume. The World Cup's global audience appears to have broadened participation well beyond the crypto-native user base and the largely U.S.-centered activity that characterized those earlier events.

The $20 billion figure encompasses trading activity both before and during the tournament. Bettors wagered approximately $5.7 billion over the five-week World Cup itself. World Cup-related markets accounted for roughly 63% of all prediction market activity during that period, underscoring the outsized role the tournament played in the broader prediction market ecosystem.

Prediction markets — platforms where users can bet on the outcomes of real-world events using cryptocurrency — have grown rapidly alongside the expansion of decentralized finance. Chainalysis found that users from every continent except Antarctica participated in World Cup prediction markets. The United States and China generated the highest attributable trading volumes, followed by Canada, Thailand, and the United Kingdom.

Despite the scale of betting activity, illicit participation remained limited. Chainalysis reported that fewer than 1% of wallets participating in World Cup prediction markets had ties to illicit actors. However, the firm identified approximately $5.4 million in flows originating from sanctioned entities and other illicit sources. The findings come as prediction market platforms face ongoing regulatory examination, with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission overseeing event contracts in the United States and having taken enforcement actions against unregistered platforms in recent years.

The report also highlighted growing adoption of blockchain-based digital collectibles. Fans traded roughly $24 million worth of FIFA Collect NFTs during the tournament. FIFA Collect, the organization's official digital collectibles platform, also distributed more than 100,000 match tickets through blockchain infrastructure. NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, are unique digital assets recorded on a blockchain that can represent ownership of digital or physical items. The ticketing distribution places FIFA among a growing set of event organizers experimenting with blockchain-based ticketing as a verifiable ownership mechanism.

Compliance measures appeared to be effective on the collectibles side as well. Wallets linked to sanctioned entities accounted for less than 0.01% of FIFA Collect users, a figure Chainalysis attributed in part to the platform's identity verification requirements.

Chainalysis, a leading blockchain data and analytics firm that works with governments and private companies worldwide, said the findings suggest blockchain technology will play a growing role in major global events. The firm underscored the importance of compliance measures as platforms attract broader participation and mainstream adoption accelerates.