Arsenal just ended a two-decade drought. The club clinched the 2025/26 Premier League title on May 31, their first league championship since the 2003/04 “Invincibles” season, and midfielder Declan Rice is already turning his attention to the FIFA World Cup 2026, which kicks off June 11.
For crypto markets, the timing is almost too neat. Arsenal’s $AFC fan token, which launched in 2021 through a partnership with Chiliz and Socios.com, expanded to the Solana and Base blockchain ecosystems in May 2026. That rollout landed right before a period when football enthusiasm, and therefore fan token trading activity, tends to spike.
Fan tokens meet football fever
The numbers behind the broader ecosystem are hard to ignore. Chiliz has reported generating over $700 million for the sports industry through more than 70 different fan tokens. Arsenal’s $AFC is one piece of that puzzle, though it’s now positioned on multiple chains to reach a wider audience.
The decision to migrate $AFC onto Solana and Base wasn’t random. Both networks offer lower transaction fees and faster settlement times compared to Ethereum mainnet, making it easier for casual fans to participate without paying gas fees that rival the price of a matchday scarf.
