FC Barcelona explores metaverse and plans own cryptocurrency
2 min read
Spanish football giant FC Barcelona plans to create its own cryptocurrency, its chairman Joan Laporta said. According to an ESPN report, Laporta also claimed that the club is exploring blockchain technology and the metaverse. Its objective is to create growth opportunities and drive the club’s sustainability.
Specifically about a cryptocurrency owned by “Barça”, the president highlighted:
“We want to create our own cryptocurrency and we have to do it ourselves,” Laporta said. “We are different because we survive financially from what we can generate through the sports industry,” he added.
Barça Cryptocurrency
Also according to Laporta, the club would have rejected recent offers from crypto companies because it wants to develop its own digital currency.
According reported by Cryptheory, last year the club turned down sponsorship from two cryptocurrency exchanges.
At the time, the Spanish press reported that the reason was that the club considered the deal “unethical”. Furthermore, they classified digital assets as “speculative and risky”.
At the end of 2021, Barcelona announced its first collection of NFTs to depict epic moments from its nearly 122-year history.
And, more recently, it was reported that the Polkadot platform had made a sponsorship proposal for the club. However, the partnership did not materialize.
Now, Laporta has revealed the club’s plans aimed at the crypto market. At the Mobile World Congress event held in Barcelona this week, the executive highlighted that he considers blockchain a key tool for creating attractive services for the club’s 300 million fans worldwide.
“We are innovative in the use and adaptation of technologies and we will continue to be”, he said. “In recent times there has been a lot of attention to blockchain products and services such as NFTs and the metaverse… emotional experience.”
Barcelona seeks innovation for survival
FC Barcelona, an institution with over 120 years of history, is owned and operated by its fans. Club governance is built around 160,000 members rather than shareholders.
Because of this, the club always needs to innovate, said Laporta:
“We don’t have big corporations or shareholders behind us. It forces us to be imaginative, innovative, courageous and to be one step ahead in many areas surrounding the sports industry.”
He added that FC Barcelona’s objective is to win titles and make the fans happy. But the club also needs to take advantage of opportunities in the sports industry. “It’s a matter of survival,” he added.
It is not yet clear when it will be launched nor what the Barcelona cryptocurrency will be used for in practice. One option would be in the form of Fan Token, with those released by Socios.com. Or, cryptocurrency could be used to pay for club tickets and items.
