{"id":37792,"date":"2022-09-21T09:14:00","date_gmt":"2022-09-21T06:14:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/?p=37792"},"modified":"2025-08-29T21:38:02","modified_gmt":"2025-08-29T18:38:02","slug":"what-is-chiliz-chz-a-guide-to-the-leading-cryptocurrency-for-sports-fans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/what-is-chiliz-chz-a-guide-to-the-leading-cryptocurrency-for-sports-fans\/","title":{"rendered":"What is Chiliz (CHZ)? A guide to the leading cryptocurrency for sports fans"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">Key points<\/h2>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Chiliz (CHZ) is the native cryptocurrency of the Socios.com platform for issuing and trading fan tokens. It ranks among the top 50 cryptoassets by market value.<\/li>\n<li>Chiliz, the company behind Socios.com, works with dozens of well-known clubs across multiple sports that issue digital assets for their fans on the platform.<\/li>\n<li>In 2021, partner clubs on Socios generated more than $200m in aggregate revenue.<\/li>\n<li>Lionel Messi is the platform\u2019s global ambassador.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">Who created Chiliz and Socios.com<\/h2>\n<p>Chiliz was founded by entrepreneur and crypto-enthusiast Alexandre Dreyfus in 2018 as a subsidiary of Malta-based Mediarex Group, which operates in sport and entertainment.<\/p>\n<p>In 2018 Chiliz raised $66m through private investment rounds. Key investors included Binance Labs, CeYuan Ventures, Jump Capital and Kosmos Capital.<\/p>\n<p>In late December 2019 the Chiliz team launched the sports-fan platform Socios.com, built using its own Chiliz Chain blockchain. The platform\u2019s base asset is the Chiliz (CHZ) cryptocurrency.<\/p>\n<p>In early 2020 the centralised cryptocurrency exchange Chiliz.net went live, billed as \u201cthe world\u2019s first exchange for sports and entertainment\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>The Chiliz team numbers more than 220 people. Offices are in Spain, Switzerland and Malta, with representatives in Turkey, the United States, France, the United Kingdom, South Korea and Brazil.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">How the Chiliz Chain blockchain works<\/h2>\n<p>To address Ethereum\u2019s high fees, Chiliz launched its <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/sidechains-what-they-are-and-how-they-work\">sidechain<\/a>, Chiliz Chain, in October 2019.<\/p>\n<p>Blocks are produced on average every five seconds and transactions are free. The chain\u2019s primary purpose is issuing and circulating fan tokens\u2014more than seventy have been minted to date.<\/p>\n<p>To maximise throughput, Chiliz Chain uses a Proof-of-Authority (PoA) consensus protocol. This variant of Proof-of-Stake relies on a limited set of trusted validator nodes (masternodes) to produce blocks and approve transactions; there are no block rewards. Performance comes at the cost of decentralisation: Chiliz Chain is run by <a href=\"https:\/\/explorer.chiliz.com\/accounts\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">just seven masternodes<\/a>, owned by the company and its largest partners.<\/p>\n<p>As of September 2022 the network had more than 1.6m user accounts, roughly matching downloads of the Socios.com mobile app.<\/p>\n<p>Since March 2022 a new version, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.chiliz.com\/en\/chain\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Chiliz Chain 2.0<\/a>, has been available on testnet. It is a standalone layer-one network with cheap, fast transactions. Chiliz says full compatibility with <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/what-is-the-ethereum-virtual-machine-evm\">EVM<\/a> will let Ethereum\u2011ecosystem developers issue NFTs and fan tokens on Chiliz Chain, as well as launch DeFi services, blockchain games and loyalty programmes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">What CHZ is for<\/h2>\n<p>The native CHZ token was issued on Ethereum in autumn 2018 under the <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/what-are-erc-20-tokens\">ERC-20 standard<\/a>. The maximum supply is 8.88bn tokens; around 6bn were in circulation by autumn 2022. The free float grows by roughly 94m CHZ, or 1.6%, a year. About 150,000 addresses hold CHZ, according to Etherscan.<\/p>\n<p>The initial allocation was as follows:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>15% \u2014 strategic acquisitions;<\/li>\n<li>15% \u2014 marketing programmes;<\/li>\n<li>20% \u2014 user-base reserve;<\/li>\n<li>7.5% \u2014 seed-round investors;<\/li>\n<li>34.5% \u2014 private token sale investors;<\/li>\n<li>5% \u2014 the Chiliz and Socios teams;<\/li>\n<li>3% \u2014 project advisers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>A portion of CHZ from fan\u2011token and NFT sales and from trading fees on the Chiliz.net exchange is burned. More than 65m tokens have been destroyed this way.<\/p>\n<p>Chiliz is used for all payments and trades on Socios.com: fan tokens can be bought and sold only for CHZ. The token is slated to be reissued on Chiliz Chain 2.0, after which it will also be used for network governance, staking and transaction fees.<\/p>\n<p>From January to April 2021 the price of CHZ rose from $0.02 to $0.77\u2014more than 38-fold. Despite the crypto-market slump in 2022, the token recovered between June and September. Chiliz is the third-largest token in the NFT project category by market capitalisation, after <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/what-is-apecoin-ape\">ApeCoin (APE)<\/a> and Flow, with a market value of $1.4bn.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">How fan tokens made Socios popular<\/h2>\n<p>Socios.com was the first blockchain project to issue digital assets designed specifically for sports fans. These \u201cfan tokens\u201d are fungible ERC\u201120 assets issued on Chiliz Chain.<\/p>\n<p>Each fan token is \u201cbranded\u201d by a particular sports team or organisation and gives holders a say in club activities and access to perks such as exclusive merchandise, match tickets and closed events.<\/p>\n<p>The first to issue a fan token on Socios was Juventus, the storied Italian football club. Dozens of Europe\u2019s best\u2011known teams followed: Atl\u00e9tico Madrid, Paris Saint\u2011Germain, Roma, Barcelona, Arsenal and others, as did the national teams of Argentina and Portugal. The full list of football tokens is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.socios.com\/fan-tokens\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">published<\/a> on the Socios website.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Fan tokens also let users:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>take part in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.socios.com\/socios-polls\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">polls<\/a> on Socios.com organised by partners;<\/li>\n<li>place <a href=\"https:\/\/www.socios.com\/socios-predictor\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">bets<\/a> on game outcomes;<\/li>\n<li>earn \u201cloyalty tokens\u201d for activity on the platform, which can be <a href=\"https:\/\/www.socios.com\/fan-rewards\/\">spent<\/a> on extra match\u2011day opportunities.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Beyond Socios.com and the Chiliz.net exchange, fan tokens trade on several centralised crypto exchanges. <\/p>\n<p>In December 2020, <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/binance-to-add-support-for-paris-saint-germain-and-juventus-fan-tokens\">began <\/a>a strategic partnership between Socios.com and <a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/what-is-binance\">the Binance cryptocurrency exchange<\/a>. It distributed fan tokens via staking BNB, BUSD and CHZ on Launchpool and listed tokens for Paris Saint\u2011Germain and Juventus. Later, more fan tokens were distributed the same way and subsequently listed on Binance. <\/p>\n<p>In late August 2022 Bybit also listed several fan tokens.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">Which sports are on Socios.com<\/h2>\n<p>By late September 2022 more than 150 organisations, teams and associations across 25 countries were partners of Socios. Beyond football, fan tokens have been issued for many sports:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Mixed martial arts: Professional Fighters League (PFL), Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC);<\/li>\n<li>Motor racing: Roush Fenway Racing, Aston Martin Cognizant F1, Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN;<\/li>\n<li>Basketball (US): Chicago Bulls, Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Lakers, etc.<\/li>\n<li>Tennis: Davis Cup;<\/li>\n<li>American football (US): Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants, Chicago Bears, etc.;<\/li>\n<li>Rugby: The Sharks, Stade Francais Paris, Leicester Tigers, etc.<\/li>\n<li>Ice hockey (US): New York Rangers, Detroit Red Wings, Pittsburgh Penguins, etc.;<\/li>\n<li>Soccer (US and Canada): Austin FC, LA Galaxy, Atlanta United FC, Toronto FC, etc.<\/li>\n<li>Esports: OG, Endpoint CeX, Vitality, etc.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">The Socios mobile app<\/h2>\n<p>The Socios.com mobile app, aimed at sports fans, is available for Android and iOS. It is the project\u2019s primary platform. The app has over 1.6m downloads and several hundred thousand active users. It is available in multiple languages, including Russian.<\/p>\n<p>Socios.com lets token\u2011holding fans access exclusive promotions, games and privileges, influence decisions by their favourite teams and earn rewards for participating in polls, votes, blockchain games and other activity.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1074\" height=\"2184\" data-id=\"185397\" src=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-1.jpg\" alt=\"\u0427\u0442\u043e \u0442\u0430\u043a\u043e\u0435 Chiliz (CHZ)? \u041e\u0431\u0437\u043e\u0440 ForkLog\" class=\"wp-image-185397\" srcset=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-1.jpg 1074w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-1-148x300.jpg 148w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-1-504x1024.jpg 504w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-1-768x1562.jpg 768w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-1-755x1536.jpg 755w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-1-1007x2048.jpg 1007w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1074px) 100vw, 1074px\" \/><figcaption>Socios.com mobile app<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1066\" height=\"2201\" data-id=\"185399\" src=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-2.jpg\" alt=\"\u0427\u0442\u043e \u0442\u0430\u043a\u043e\u0435 Chiliz (CHZ)? \u041e\u0431\u0437\u043e\u0440 ForkLog\" class=\"wp-image-185399\" srcset=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-2.jpg 1066w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-2-145x300.jpg 145w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-2-496x1024.jpg 496w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-2-768x1586.jpg 768w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-2-744x1536.jpg 744w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-2-992x2048.jpg 992w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1066px) 100vw, 1066px\" \/><figcaption>Socios.com mobile app<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1080\" height=\"2199\" data-id=\"185400\" src=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-3.jpg\" alt=\"\u0427\u0442\u043e \u0442\u0430\u043a\u043e\u0435 Chiliz (CHZ)? \u041e\u0431\u0437\u043e\u0440 ForkLog\" class=\"wp-image-185400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-3.jpg 1080w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-3-147x300.jpg 147w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-3-503x1024.jpg 503w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-3-768x1564.jpg 768w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-3-754x1536.jpg 754w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-3-1006x2048.jpg 1006w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1080px) 100vw, 1080px\" \/><figcaption>Socios.com mobile app<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1080\" height=\"2186\" data-id=\"185401\" src=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-4.jpg\" alt=\"\u0427\u0442\u043e \u0442\u0430\u043a\u043e\u0435 Chiliz (CHZ)? \u041e\u0431\u0437\u043e\u0440 ForkLog\" class=\"wp-image-185401\" srcset=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-4.jpg 1080w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-4-148x300.jpg 148w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-4-506x1024.jpg 506w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-4-768x1554.jpg 768w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-4-759x1536.jpg 759w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-4-1012x2048.jpg 1012w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1080px) 100vw, 1080px\" \/><figcaption>Socios.com mobile app<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1080\" height=\"2198\" data-id=\"185402\" src=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-5.jpg\" alt=\"\u0427\u0442\u043e \u0442\u0430\u043a\u043e\u0435 Chiliz (CHZ)? \u041e\u0431\u0437\u043e\u0440 ForkLog\" class=\"wp-image-185402\" srcset=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-5.jpg 1080w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-5-147x300.jpg 147w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-5-503x1024.jpg 503w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-5-768x1563.jpg 768w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-5-755x1536.jpg 755w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-5-1006x2048.jpg 1006w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1080px) 100vw, 1080px\" \/><figcaption>Socios.com mobile app<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1080\" height=\"2179\" data-id=\"185403\" src=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-6.jpg\" alt=\"\u0427\u0442\u043e \u0442\u0430\u043a\u043e\u0435 Chiliz (CHZ)? \u041e\u0431\u0437\u043e\u0440 ForkLog\" class=\"wp-image-185403\" srcset=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-6.jpg 1080w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-6-149x300.jpg 149w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-6-508x1024.jpg 508w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-6-768x1550.jpg 768w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-6-761x1536.jpg 761w, https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/chiliz-fl-6-1015x2048.jpg 1015w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1080px) 100vw, 1080px\" \/><figcaption>Socios.com mobile app<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">Outlook for Chiliz and Socios.com<\/h2>\n<p>By late September 2022 Socios.com had more than 150 partners in 27 countries. Alongside scores of popular football clubs, it has attracted sports organisations from many other fields. In 2021 fan tokens were launched for the UFC, and sales began for Formula 1 teams Aston Martin and Alfa Romeo.<\/p>\n<p>America\u2019s big leagues, the NHL and NBA, have signed partnership agreements but have yet to launch fan tokens on Socios.com; that could follow the mainnet launch of Chiliz Chain 2.0.<\/p>\n<p>In May 2022 the celebrated footballer Lionel Messi signed a three-year, $20m contract with Socios.com to serve as brand ambassador, appearing in advertising campaigns and promotions.<\/p>\n<p>Chiliz is developing its metaverse efforts. In August 2022 the blockchain company <a href=\"https:\/\/decrypt.co\/106373\/crypto-firm-chiliz-nabs-102m-stake-fc-barcelonas-digital-studio\">inves<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/decrypt.co\/106373\/crypto-firm-chiliz-nabs-102m-stake-fc-barcelonas-digital-studio\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">t<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/decrypt.co\/106373\/crypto-firm-chiliz-nabs-102m-stake-fc-barcelonas-digital-studio\">ed<\/a> $100m in the digital world of Barcelona football club by acquiring a 24.5% stake in Bar\u00e7a Studios, which develops digital content. <\/p>\n<p>The fan\u2011token concept has found a receptive audience in global sport. According to Socios, club revenues on the platform <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/lifestyle\/sports\/benfica-join-crypto-craze-with-socios-2022-06-07\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">exceeded<\/a> $200m in 2021. More prominent sports organisations are joining. Chiliz has built a new channel for fan engagement\u2014and a new market.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-cards single_card\">\n<h2 class=\"card_label\">Further reading<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/what-are-soulbound-tokens-and-how-do-they-differ-from-nfts\">What are soulbound tokens and how do they differ from NFTs?<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/nft-staking-what-it-is-and-how-it-works\">What is NFT staking and how does it work?<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/what-is-stepn-and-the-gmt-cryptocurrency\">What is STEPN and the GMT cryptocurrency?<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/why-opensea-is-the-most-popular-nft-marketplace\">Why is OpenSea the most popular NFT marketplace?<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/news\/what-is-gamefi\">What is GameFi?<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How did Chiliz build sport\u2019s most popular blockchain platform? What is Chiliz (CHZ) for? Which clubs and organisations issue fan tokens on Socios.com? Answers, in brief.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":37793,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"select":"1","news_style_id":"1","cryptorium_level":"2","_short_excerpt_text":"","creation_source":"","_metatest_mainpost_news_update":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2113],"tags":[2117,2129,2062,828],"class_list":["post-37792","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cryptorium","tag-101-altcoins","tag-101-nfts-and-the-metaverse","tag-chiliz","tag-sports"],"aioseo_notices":[],"amp_enabled":true,"views":"91","promo_type":"1","layout_type":"1","short_excerpt":"","is_update":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37792","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37792"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37792\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37794,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37792\/revisions\/37794"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37793"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37792"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37792"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37792"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}