The Technology Powering the 2026 FIFA World Cup

The upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup is going to be unique for several reasons. It’s shaking things up using a new, expanded tournament structure, plus it’s being hosted by three nations for the first time since it began. The tournament is also going to benefit from cutting-edge streaming and broadcast technology, explored in more detail below.

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Lenovo’s Streaming Partnership

The 2022 World Cup was the most-watched sporting event in history. As such, organisers expect that 2026 will beat their record. The sports broadcasting landscape is changing, however, as multiple sports streaming services are planned to launch this decade. To guarantee crisp, low latency streaming, FIFA have partnered with Lenovo to deliver 4k and 8k streaming.

Streaming is dominant in most visual media industries now. While on-demand streaming is used for TV broadcasts, live-streaming has been embraced by industries that benefit from interactivity or immediacy. An example of this is the iGaming industry. Now, users can play live blackjack online, as well as other games that are compatible with the streaming format, where streaming tech allows users to play at casino tables with a real professional dealer, despite being miles away. The growth of live-streaming in industries such as these shows how streaming technology continues to develop across industries.

Sports fans have always wanted the immediacy of watching a match play out in real time. However, streaming over the internet comes with a unique set of challenges. This is something Netflix discovered when they began streaming live sports entertainment – the Mike Tyson vs Jake Paul fight was plagued by buffering issues. While Netflix is new to the live-streaming game, FIFA isn’t about to make the same mistake. That’s why they’ve already locked in official technology partners like Lenovo to ensure that, no matter what happens on the pitch, every second is streamed to the viewing audience at an uncompromising level of quality.

The FIFA+ Augmented Reality Experience

For the last World Cup, FIFA added a raft of new features to its FIFA+ mobile app. They also introduced the FIFA Player app, which is a handy database that tracks player performance and clips their best plays during the match. On FIFA+, the Stadium Experience meant that users could track on-field players in real time using an augmented reality overlay. You can see it in action here:

Fans can expect an improved version of this technology going into 2026. Through this AR overlay, distant viewers will have unique insights that won’t even be available to the fans who are in the stands. You’ll be able to see player speed, real-time statistics, and replays of moments that were referred to the video assistant referee (VAR) system. What’s certain is that this service, and the things it can track, will only improve in the coming years. However, the extent of that improvement remains to be seen.

While other innovations are being made on the security, ticketing, and accessibility fronts, it’s these two partnerships that may take the 2026 World Cup to the next level. FIFA isn’t abandoning their streaming app anytime soon, in fact it should get more popular, while tech giants like Lenovo are on hand to make sure the event runs smoothly, and at top quality.