Friday, 28 November 2025
Friday, 28 November 2025
FC Barcelona is facing sharp scrutiny for entering a three year sponsorship agreement with a little known crypto start up registered in Samoa, a partnership critics say exposes fans to potential financial risks.
The sponsor, Zero-Knowledge Proof, promotes a privacy focused blockchain technology and has been named Barcelona’s official blockchain technology partner.
The agreement was announced in mid November, with ZKP introducing itself to the public through its first post on X.
At the time the account had only a few dozen followers. It has since grown to more than 1500. The company’s Instagram account, created less than two weeks ago, had 265 followers last Thursday.
Barcelona said on 14 November that “ZKP involves ensuring that the identity of sports fans, data, and intelligence are handled with cryptographic confidence, verifying information with reliable mathematical processes.”
The club’s explanation drew limited attention among supporters unfamiliar with the world of cryptography.
ZKP takes its name from the cryptographic technique that allows someone to prove ownership or funds without revealing personal data.
Beyond that, the firm offers almost no information about itself. Its website advocates for transparency yet provides no details on its founders or the source of the 100 million dollars it claims to have raised.
“Everyone asks, ‘Who’s behind this?’” the site says. “As if knowing the names would make the code stronger. It won’t.” The company claims to be made up of engineers, cryptographers, “system killers” and former founders.
The company is based offshore, which makes it difficult to determine who controls it.
ZKP held its first auction of 200 million zero knowledge proof coins on Thursday. Its terms of service are governed by Samoan law.
Martin Calladine, author of No Questions Asked: How football joined the crypto con, told the Financial Times that the lack of information about ZKP was deeply concerning.
According to Calladine, Barcelona fans could be enticed into buying coins that could easily end up worthless. Under the deal, ZKP gains access to the club’s digital channels to promote its services.
A now removed section of ZKP’s terms of service stated that its legal name was Braxova Ltd, a Samoan registered company listed at the office of a business consultant in a two story building in Apia, the country’s capital. This reference has since disappeared.
The company maintains that it has no fixed office because it is a decentralised project with contributors in several countries.
Its press release quoted someone named Jeff Wilck as its head of blockchain, though the Financial Times reported that it was unable to find public information about him.
ZKP’s social media footprint has also fuelled doubts. Its X account followed only three profiles when the sponsorship was announced: Barca, Bitcoin, and Andrew Tate.
Tate later posted a video on 15 November promoting ZKP. The company’s account shared it and then deleted the post hours later, although the video remains online.
Tate is facing 21 charges filed by the UK Crown Prosecution Service in May, including rape, human trafficking, assault, and controlling prostitution.
The legal proceedings continue. In 2022, he was arrested in Romania along with his brother on allegations of human trafficking, rape, and involvement in an organised criminal group.
A court later sent the case back to the Crown Prosecution Service because of procedural issues.
Following growing questions, Barcelona issued a statement on Wednesday. It said the club had no connection with ZKP’s token and no responsibility for its issuance or management.
The statement added that the token and the technology associated with it were not part of the sponsorship agreement.
Barcelona said it remained committed to transparency and respecting its institutional agreements, and that it would provide updates once conclusive information was available.
Former Barcelona board director Xavier Vilajoana, who plans to stand against current president Joan Laporta in next year’s election, questioned the club’s due diligence before signing the deal.
He said that partnering with an embryonic and secretive crypto start up suggested that desperation was beginning to shape decisions at a financially troubled institution.
“It is incredibly concerning that Barca’s leadership would choose to associate the club with a company whose background raises so many red flags,” he said.
