In a new revelation it has been confirmed that former Barcelona president has been linked to a negative PR campaign against Pep Guardiola.
Former Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu has found himself at the center of damaging new revelations in the ongoing ‘Barçagate’ scandal.
According to goal.com the police investigators have uncovered WhatsApp conversations that directly implicate the former Barcelona president in orchestrating a covert social media campaign targeting his critics, including Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola.
The evidence suggests Bartomeu personally oversaw operations run by Nicestream, a contracted company that Barcelona employed during his presidency.
This campaign was allegedly designed to manipulate online discourse and boost Bartomeu’s standing ahead of the 2021 presidential elections through systematic attacks on his rivals.
According to police findings reported by El Pais, Bartomeu stands accused of concealing contractual arrangements, hiding commission payments, and intentionally withholding crucial documents from external auditors.
When investigators examined his electronic devices, they discovered more than 130 Nicestream reports, yet only a small portion of these were ever shared with Price Waterhouse Coopers, the auditing firm tasked with investigating the club after the scandal first emerged in 2020.
The withheld reports allegedly contained evidence of targeted smear campaigns against prominent figures including Joan Laporta, Víctor Font, and Guardiola.
These operations were conducted through an extensive network of at least 226 fake social media profiles, which police say were used to attack critics while simultaneously promoting favorable content about Bartomeu’s associates, particularly former president Sandro Rosell.
The financial structure of this operation appears equally questionable. Investigators believe the campaign was funded through deliberately fragmented contracts totaling over €2.3 million, structured specifically to avoid detection by Barcelona’s internal oversight mechanisms.
Police documents indicate that Bartomeu maintained direct involvement in the operation, receiving regular updates from his adviser Jaume Masferrer and personally requesting modifications to content and imagery.
Despite Bartomeu’s continued denials of wrongdoing, the recovered communications paint a picture of active supervision and subsequent obstruction efforts.
When auditors demanded complete transparency during their investigation, Bartomeu reportedly resisted, stating that the audit was commissioned by the board and that only the board would determine what findings became public.
