“Covering where Fintechs and Sport collide, at the Fintech Sports Club we keep readers up to date with the latest in partnerships, sponsorships and the deepening relationship between the world's favourite sports and the game-changing innovation of financial technology.”

With the global economy set to benefit to the tune of $41billion, the 2026 World Cup is the ultimate test for an increasingly digitised financial system. Fintechs are playing a starring role in providing the infrastructure that enables 6 billion fans to engage and experience the World Cup in new, exciting and efficient ways.

For the first time ever, FIFA has recruited an official banking sponsor in Bank of America, who alongside Visa as the official payments partner, are demonstrating the ways in which sport and finance are becoming evermore integrated - with benefits for fans and commercial stakeholders alike.

For the 16 tournament venues across the US, Mexico and Canada, Visa’s new payments systems are redefining the matchday experience. Making each stadium cashless, these systems look to improve the efficiency of stadium transactions, taking fans out of concourse queues and back in front of the action on the pitch - while also allowing for greater trading volume.

In the US venues, Bank of America are taking a similar approach - distributing 2 million wearable fan bands that allow frictionless, contactless payments from connected accounts, at both stadiums and fan venues.

Mirroring domestic leagues such as the Premier League, football finance continues to become more data driven and digitised with fintechs on hand to make these systems tick.

There is also the continued trend of gameification and tokenisation being offered by banks as sign-up incentives - promising fans opportunities to get closer to the action and encouraging financial engagement.

Visa are offering fans entries to sweepstakes through qualifying purchases with opportunities to win all-inclusive packages to the finals and semi-finals. For the first time ever, stablecoins are being accepted as legal tender for ticket purchases - hugely increasing trust in currencies such as USDC.

This year’s rendition is a truly international event - not just because it takes place across 3 countries, but also because the expansion to 48 teams means matchdays span peak time-zones across North America, Europe and Asia. The event stimulates economic activity outside of usual hours.

This is a particular issue for the betting industry - which can usually rely on domestic schedules to reliably map out user traffic to particular parts of the day. With $50billion set to be wagered over the course of the 6 week tournament, and games taking place at all times of the night, it’s no longer a case of operators managing services around peaks, but rather taking an always-on approach to meet demand around the clock.

Payhawk have deepened their presence in professional tennis by signing up-and-coming star Alexander Vasilev as an ambassador. The young gun joins ATP Top 10 player Grigor Dimitrov on the fintech’s global ambassador team, reflecting the Bulgarian unicorn’s commitment to supporting tennis in their native country.

Not only is it a move that embodies Payhawk’s commitment to the sport, but also an intelligent way of breaking into one of world sport’s most lucrative industries, which is already populated by some of the world’s largest financial brands, such as Ant International, BitPanda and XTB.

With over 1 billion fans worldwide, and a media and sponsorship landscape worth over $2.2billion annually, Payhawk will benefit from enhanced visibility as their ambassadors take to the court in the world’s biggest tournaments with the brand on their shirt.

As is often the case with fintech partnerships, the brand relationship goes beyond just visibility - with Payhawk committing to projects and initiatives that impact players at a grassroots level, as well as providing their consumers with exclusive rewards and benefits such as merchandise and matchday tickets.

As World Cup fever sweeps offices all over the country, Corporate 5s are launching a brand new football tournament to give companies the chance to experience the glory for themselves.

With 16 slots available, teams will be split into 4 groups and play weekly matches on Monday nights at our world-class Shoreditch venue.

Each company will be representing a country of their choice, meaning national pride will be on the line, as well as bragging rights to take back to the office.

Want a shot at lifting the Corporate Jules-Rimet? Contact Duncan or Charlie and book your space today.