The 2026 FIFA World Cup kicked off on June 11 with a historic number of African nations in the draw. Ten teams from the continent qualified, six of them from sub-Saharan Africa. But one of those six teams, South Africa, decided to make its entrance with a crypto twist.
The South African Football Association launched the $SAFA fan token on May 21 through Chiliz and its Socios.com platform. It became the first fan token ever issued by an African national football team.
The crypto layer on top of the beautiful game
Chiliz already powers fan tokens for several national teams, including Argentina and Portugal. The CHZ token serves as the underlying utility asset for the entire Socios.com ecosystem, giving holders access to polls, rewards, and other forms of fan engagement.
Kraken was named FIFA’s first Official Crypto Exchange Supporter for the 2026 tournament. South Africa’s opening match against Mexico on June 11 served as a natural catalyst for attention around both the $SAFA token and CHZ. Fan token trading activity reportedly surged following the token’s launch announcement.
