How TikTok ended up producing exclusive content for AFCON

TikTok announced on Thursday that the pact will produce exclusive content from the games which kicked off on Sunday.

The deal also makes it a part of the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League 2022 and the TotalEnergies CAF Women's Africa Cup of Nations which will take place in July in Morocco.

“With everything from pre & post match content and highlights, to football-related challenges, TikTok will become a home for the spirit and passion of these iconic sporting events,” said TikTok.

The social media giant said it will also introduce in-app effects, a special hub for tournaments as well as football-themed features and filters for fans.

“Fans on the African continent have not been able to come together to enjoy the beautiful game of football due to COVID-19 regulations,” TikTok Content Operations Manager for Africa, Boniswa Sidwaba, said of the pact.

“For us, this is also an opportunity to bring African football fans around the world together again, online, starting with the much anticipated TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations.”

TikTok termed the pact as a big deal with football being Africa's most popular sport. The hashtag #AfricanFootball, for instance, has amassed over 48.3 million views on the platform.

Across the globe, TikTok says the hashtags #Football and #Soccer have a staggering 273 billion and 108 billion views respectively.

TikTok dethroned Google to become the most popular domain in 2021, and boasts of over 1 billion active monthly users.