The 2026 World Cup kicks off June 11, and Thomas Tuchel’s England squad announcement on May 21 has consumed the sports world. But there’s a parallel storyline playing out in crypto markets that most football fans haven’t noticed yet: England, one of the tournament’s biggest draws, has no dedicated national team fan token.

That absence is increasingly conspicuous. FIFA recently named Kraken as its Official Crypto Exchange Supporter just days before the tournament begins. Meanwhile, the Chiliz platform hosts tokens for clubs like Arsenal, Manchester City, and Aston Villa, but the Three Lions are nowhere to be found.

Tuchel’s squad and the attention economy

Tuchel generated significant attention with his 26-man roster. The German manager excluded Phil Foden, Trent Alexander-Arnold, and Harry Maguire from the squad. Ivan Toney was included as something of a wildcard selection. The big question hovering over the squad centers on Jude Bellingham’s role, with Tuchel reportedly focused on positional clarity for the Real Madrid midfielder alongside captain Harry Kane.

The fan token landscape heading into the tournament

The data around England’s squad announcement and warm-up results shows no immediate market volatility in related tokens. The price action, or lack thereof, suggests that squad selection news alone isn’t a catalyst.

There’s also a Jude Bellingham-specific token, $BELI, trading on Solana. Player-specific tokens on Solana operate in a very different risk category than official club tokens on Chiliz. These are typically community-created assets with no formal endorsement from the athlete, meaning liquidity can evaporate quickly and price movements often have zero correlation with on-pitch performance.

Kraken’s FIFA partnership and what it signals

The Kraken deal is arguably the most consequential crypto development tied to this World Cup. Having a major US-based exchange serve as FIFA’s official crypto partner lends institutional credibility to the entire fan token ecosystem, even if Kraken itself isn’t directly involved in token issuance.

What investors should watch

The FA has shown no public indication of entering the fan token space, and regulatory considerations in the UK around crypto promotions remain stringent.

The Bukayo Saka situation offers a cautionary tale on the player-token front. His injury news, despite Arsenal’s existing Bitpanda crypto partnership, produced minimal trading impact on associated $Saka token volumes.