Espanyol was one of the first La Liga clubs to embrace the world of cryptocurrencies in the summer of 2021, when a state regulation came into force that prohibited Spanish clubs from displaying bookmaker advertising on shirts The agreement signed with Bitci, for three seasons (2021-22, 2022-23 and 2023-24) gave an interesting financial boost to the Spanish entity, since the Turkish company was in the second tier of sponsors of the club, second only to Riviera Maya. Espanyol managed to collect around 250,000 euros corresponding to the fixed amount of the agreement, but the variable amount that depended on the sale of the fan tokens in Turkey, and which the Spaniard estimates at around 750,000 euros.
Bitci intended to trade a maximum of 50 million fan tokens with the name of the white-and-blue club over the course of the three seasons, but it only managed to issue 20 million, equivalent to 40% of the total. They were sold in a matter of three days during the month of September 2021 at a rate of 10 cents each. In other words, in the first and only issue made so far, the Turkish company moved 2 million euros for a digital asset that is more focused on investors than football fans.
It is precisely on this amount that Espanyol expected to receive a significant pinch before the end of that season. Bitci’s ability to operate abroad, however, began to falter with the onset of Turkish regulations that sought to regulate the crypto sector. The veto on international cryptocurrency transactions prevented Bitci from dealing with pending payments with sports entities such as Espanyol, Celta, Cadiz or Alabès, which have taken legal action. They are not the only ones affected: the cryptocurrency company Iqoniq generated an €820,000 hole in the Royal Society after ending up in a liquidation process. The resolution of the Bitci case, however, does not imply the total divorce of Espanyol from the sector blockchain. The white-and-blue entity maintains another sponsorship agreement, in this case with Crypto Snack, until 2025, which will allow it to become the first club in the League to accept payments with cryptocurrencies.
Power8, from ‘naming rights’ to scam
At the time of signing the agreement, the noble offices of Espanyol were fully aware that this was a sponsorship with a high risk component: it was an emerging company in a sector lacking regulation for the most part of countries It is for this reason that the white-and-blue club demanded by contract the advance payment of the fixed amounts. In other words, he received a part of it at the beginning of each year. It is the same procedure, in fact, that had been followed with Power8, which had been sold as a Chinese company providing technology for online bookmakers, but was actually the epicenter of a pyramid scheme : it was part of a network of companies related to each other that sold shares or properties without profitability in order to be able to pay the interest thanks to the money of new investors.
New investors made an initial contribution, but faced a series of problems withdrawing the money later, when they were still trying to convince them to increase their investments. It was supposed to be the most important sponsorship contract in Espanyol’s history, but it ended up creating a major hole in the club’s accounts. According to sources of the white-and-blue entity, Espanyol managed to collect around 8.5 of the nearly 38.5 million euros expected in an agreement that was signed for seven seasons, but which did not arrive to celebrate their first year. The company closed its Barcelona office and disappeared altogether, prompting Espanyol to file a lawsuit. Power8 had a presence in assets such as the first team jersey and uns naming rights of Cornellà-El Prat who, eight years later, are still looking for a relief.
