Kevin De Bruyne looks forward to enjoying fourth World Cup, and his crypto ties run deeper than you think

Kevin De Bruyne has played in three World Cups. He says this next one will be the first he actually enjoys.

The Belgian captain, now 35 and playing for Napoli, is preparing for the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a noticeably different vibe. Belgium qualified unbeaten, and they’ll face Egypt, Iran, and New Zealand in the group stage.

A shift in mentality

De Bruyne’s previous World Cup appearances in 2014, 2018, and 2022 each came with escalating pressure. 2014 was the announcement of Belgium’s arrival. 2018 was supposed to be the coronation. 2022 was the last chance. None of them ended with a trophy.

When De Bruyne says this is the fourth World Cup he “can enjoy,” he’s really saying the burden has lifted. For a player who has scored over 36 international goals across his career, many of them in qualifying rounds, there’s a freedom in simply being present without the obligation to deliver a miracle.

The crypto connection most fans don’t know about

De Bruyne became a brand ambassador for Phemex, a cryptocurrency exchange, back in May 2022. The partnership focused on education, with the collaboration centered on creating content designed to bridge the gap between sports fans and crypto literacy.

A meme token called KEVIN has emerged on the Solana blockchain, referencing the Belgian star. This isn’t an official De Bruyne project. There haven’t been any major market movements or promotional pushes around the KEVIN token recently.

Separately, Panini has released NFTs linked to De Bruyne as part of their digital trading card collection. Physical sticker albums for World Cups have been a tradition since the 1970s, and digital versions are the obvious next step.

What this means for investors watching sports and crypto converge

De Bruyne’s Phemex arrangement has been comparatively low-key. Education-focused partnerships don’t generate the same headlines as token launches or exchange endorsements, but they also don’t carry the same reputational risk when markets turn south.

The absence of notable market activity around De Bruyne-linked digital assets in recent weeks reinforces that reality.

Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.