Criminal complaint filed against Fifa over NFTs ahead of World Cup
Fifa has been referred to prosecutors after Switzerland’s gambling regulator filed a criminal complaint against football’s world governing body over NFTs.
The complaint was launched by Gespa, the Swiss Gambling Supervisory Authority, and relates to the “Fifa Collect” platform and the NFTs hosted on the site.
It marks an escalation against the body over its use of the blockchain just months before the 2026 World Cup, which is being co-hosted by the US, Canada and Mexico.
The gambling regulator had been looking into the NFTs since early October, though details of which items have been referred to prosecutors have not been disclosed.
“Gespa was made aware of the online platform collect.fifa.com at the beginning of October 2025,” the regulator said. “Various competitions (drops, challenges, etc.) related to so-called collectibles are offered there. These collectibles are non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
“Participation in the competitions is only possible in exchange for a monetary stake, with monetary benefits to be won. Whether participants win a prize depends on random draws or similar procedures.”
Fifa Collect headache
Gespa goes on to say that the Fifa Collect offers are “partly lotteries and partly sports betting”.
Law enforcement will now look over the referral and decide whether to press charges against the Zurich-based body.
It comes amid concerns over potential volumes of illegal betting across the 2026 Fifa World Cup given the tournament’s sheer size and status across three nations.
The Fifa Collect website promotes a three-step plan to purchase an NFT: open digital packs to discover “official football moments”; collect and trade with other owners; and redeem rewards such as “access to the Fifa World Cup 26”.
“Fifa Collect provides the opportunity for football fans around the world to unite, collect, and trade unique digital football moments,” the website reads.
“From the greatest moments in Fifa World Cup history to iconic Fifa art and imagery, fans will now have the chance to own a piece of the game’s past to fuel its future.”