The 2026 World Cup, to be held in the United States, Mexico and Canada, will be this year’s major sporting event, but it will also be the first to function as a living giant laboratory for sports technology.
Almost every action on the pitch generates digital data: player position, ball movement, contact points, referee decisions, crowd movement, broadcast output for viewers, and even tactical team analysis.
Behind the scenes of seemingly simple matches, layers of cameras, servers, algorithms, mobile devices, and AI systems operate to turn the World Cup into something.
The tournament will be the first of its kind to feature 48 national teams, with 104 matches played in 16 host cities. Technically, that scale changes the rules of the game. A World Cup like this cannot rely solely on referees, television cameras and traditional broadcasts.
It requires distributed computing infrastructure, load management, near real-time video transmission, and data analysis tools for all teams and systems that can make or support decisions within seconds. In other words, the 2026 World Cup is no longer just a sporting event. This is a global computing event.
The most advanced video assistant referee ever
One of the tournament’s key technologies is an advanced semi-automatic offside system. A previous version of this technology was used at the 2022 World Cup, but it will take another leap forward in 2026. Rather than offside information only reaching the VAR room, the system will now be able to send alerts directly to the on-field referee in clear cases.
As a result, the time between a player being offside and the flag being raised is reduced, especially in relatively simple situations. FIFA stressed that the system is not intended to replace referees in all cases and make independent decisions in complex cases with impact on matches, but is intended to speed up clear decisions and reduce unnecessary interruptions.
The system is based on a combination of optical tracking cameras and ball data. According to a report on the tournament’s technology setup, 16 high-definition cameras will be in operation during each match, tracking many points on every player’s body. That information is fed into a computer vision system that can reconstruct the player’s position in space.
Rather than relying solely on lines drawn on a video image, the system constructs a 3D representation of the moment the ball is passed. For gadget fans, this is where soccer meets technology from the world of self-driving cars, robotics and virtual reality.
In addition to cameras, all tournament players underwent a 3D scan to create a personal digital avatar. FIFA says the scan takes about one second per player and creates an accurate model of their body dimensions. Instead of a generic avatar representing the average player, the system uses digital numbers based on the player’s own body: height, limb length, body structure, and other reference points.
These avatars will be integrated into offside systems and television broadcasts to provide viewers with a clearer simulation of the play. This is one of the first times a personal “digital twin” has become an official component of officiating a global sporting event.
The ball itself is also becoming a computing component. Adidas’ Trionda, the official tournament ball, is equipped with a motion sensor chip that operates at 500 hertz. This means the ball can send hundreds of measurements every second about its movement in space.
This information helps determine exactly when contact with the ball took place. This is an important factor in offside decisions, handballs, and other events where it is difficult for the human eye to distinguish between two quick movements. Combining ball data with camera data creates a much richer digital picture than a standard broadcast camera.
Artificial Intelligence for Referee Views
Umpires themselves are also becoming a source of data. FIFA and Lenovo have introduced an advanced version of Referee View. This is a body camera attached to the referee, providing a first-person view from the center of the game.
An interesting innovation is not only in the camera itself, but also in the image stabilization using AI, which is designed to reduce shakes caused by driving or sudden movements. Lenovo says the system is expected to reduce motion distortion by up to 50%.
For viewers, this could provide a whole new perspective on the pace of the match, distance, contact and confusion around the referee. For technology experts, this is a demonstration of real-time video stabilization in a particularly difficult environment.
One of the most interesting backend tools is Football AI Pro, a generative AI assistant that FIFA and Lenovo are designing for all 48 teams. The tool aims to analyze hundreds of millions of data points owned by FIFA and generate insights in text, video, charts, and 3D simulations.
Although he is not expected to change coaches or make decisions during games, it could change the way teams prepare for games and analyze their opponents. Its importance goes beyond sports. Rather than having advanced analytical tools available only to wealthy teams, FIFA presents the system as a way to equalize access to data and analytical capabilities for all participants.
Lenovo servers are up and running
Behind all these systems is a large computing infrastructure. Lenovo, FIFA’s official technology partner, announced it will deploy servers at the International Broadcast Center in Dallas, more than 17,000 Lenovo and Motorola devices, and more than 200 engineers at stadiums and training facilities.
According to the company, ThinkSystem servers handle high volumes of live video and power 10-channel IPTV broadcasts across more than 1,000 screens at FIFA venues, reducing latency to less than five seconds. This means near real-time internal broadcasts for many stakeholders, including production staff, media, dignitaries, operations teams, and professional staff.
This is also a key test for edge computing. Rather than sending all the information to a distant cloud and waiting for processing, much of the processing should be done close to the field or in a dedicated control center. Delays of a few seconds can be significant during live broadcasts, security incidents, technical failures, or referee decisions. The World Cup therefore serves to demonstrate one of the major trends in computing: the shift from a cloud-only model to a hybrid model in which local servers, control centers, and AI systems work together.
The fan experience is also becoming almost completely digital. The official FIFA app includes schedules, live scores, real-time alerts, 3D stadium maps, arrival planning, location-based information, and links to alternative ticketing apps.
The official ticketing app allows fans to download tickets to their smartphones, forward them via email to others, and use their digital tickets to gain entry to games. Instead of a tournament experience that starts at the stadium gate, FIFA is building a software layer that accompanies fans from their hotel to their transportation to their seats.
In crowd and stadium management, Lenovo said it is introducing an AI-based navigation system to reduce crowding and improve movement within the venue, along with digital and holographic experiences. Not all of these technologies are introduced in complete detail, so it is appropriate to view them as part of the operations and experience layer rather than as a single defined system.
In the world of smart stadiums, a combination of digital signage, load sensors, real-time information, and navigation apps have become central tools for managing large-scale events in recent years. A three-nation World Cup is one of the most complex scenarios for such an operation.
Leverage AI to monitor social media and security
Another, less visible layer is protection on social media. According to a report by guardianFIFA is expanding the use of AI-based protection services at tournaments with the aim of reducing players and teams’ exposure to abusive comments online.
The service filters offensive content based on an extensive keyword database, hides comments within seconds, and works on platforms like TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook. This is not field technology, but it is an integral part of the modern World Cup. Events take place not only in stadiums, but also in the digital space, generating billions of views, comments, videos and public conversations around every mistake, goal and refereeing decision.
On the security front, there are also technologies that are not part of the official configuration of each FIFA stadium, but are relevant to the host country. For example, in Mexico, there are reports that robot dogs are being used for security and patrol purposes in the Monterrey region.
According to reports, the robot is intended to enter dangerous areas without putting police at risk, transmit live footage to security forces and assist in early intervention. Reuters has published a fact-finding study that shows that, contrary to claims circulating online, these robots are not intended for facial recognition. Once again, the World Cup will be a testing ground for technologies already familiar from robot exhibitions and urban security systems.
In addition to the technological promise, this event also highlights the huge digital attack surface that comes with large-scale events. US cybersecurity companies and law enforcement agencies are warning of risks to fake FIFA websites, ticket fraud, fraudulent apps, phishing campaigns, ransomware attacks and external vendors.
In that sense, the World Cup is not only a showcase of AI and sports, but also a multinational cybersecurity test. Millions of fans, thousands of vendors, hundreds of temporary systems, digital payments, and mobile tickets are easy targets for attackers.
After all, the 2026 World Cup presents a rough picture of the near future: a gigantic physical event managed almost entirely through a digital layer. The ball knows how to move and report, players are represented as avatars, referees are connected to cameras, teams receive AI assistants, matches are broadcast on edge computing infrastructure, and fans enter through algorithmically filtered apps and social networks.
People watching the game are watching soccer. Those looking behind the scenes will witness one of the largest real-world tests of artificial intelligence, real-time video, sensors, robotics, and digital infrastructure ever at the massive event.
