• FIFA has integrated the Avalanche blockchain into the ticket sales system for the 2026 World Cup.
• The new model uses the digital rights RTB and RTT instead of reselling the tickets themselves.
• The system is designed to reduce fraud, bot activity, and speculation on the secondary market.
• The total volume of RTB and RTT transactions has already exceeded $25 million.

The International Federation of Football (FIFA) has implemented an Avalanche-based blockchain infrastructure for the new ticket distribution system for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. CoinDesk explained how this mechanism works and how many tickets have already been sold under the new model.

The solution works through the FIFA Collect platform, created in collaboration with the company Modex. It uses a separate Avalanche blockchain and introduces two digital instruments — Right-to-Buy (RTB) and Right-to-Ticket (RTT).

RTB is not a ticket but grants a fan a priority right to purchase one. Such a digital asset can be sold on the secondary market. After being used, RTB automatically turns into RTT, which opens access to buying an official ticket through FIFA's standard system, the statement says.

According to the head of consumer enterprise solutions at Ava Labs, Dominic Carbonaro, the main idea is to move the secondary ticket market into FIFA's ecosystem.

"We want to provide a Web2 experience but with a blockchain under the hood. The user should not even know they are using a blockchain," he noted.

The company explained that this model allows confirming the authenticity of ticket purchase rights on the blockchain, reducing the risk of forgeries and fraudulent resales.

According to Ava Labs, more than 100,000 RTBs have already been issued, more than 50,000 Club World Cup tickets have been distributed together with such rights, and RTT trading volume has exceeded $15 million. The total volume of RTB and RTT transactions has already exceeded $25 million.

Besides fighting speculation, the new system allows FIFA to obtain more information about the movement of ticket purchase rights within its own ecosystem without sharing this data with third-party marketplaces.

CoinDesk noted that this project demonstrates one of the largest examples of the practical use of blockchain technologies beyond cryptocurrency trading. At the same time, the very fact of using a blockchain remains almost imperceptible to end users.

Recall that in October 2025 we reported that Switzerland is investigating FIFA over possible gambling elements in the sale of NFT tickets for the 2026 World Cup.

Source: Incrypted