Former Barcelona chief exposed for secretly funding PR attacks on Pep Guardiola and rivals

It is almost unbelievable, but the truth has now come out, and the story is shaking Spanish football to its very core. The police in Catalonia have uncovered new and damning evidence that shows just how far former Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu was willing to go to protect his power and damage his rivals. For years there had been whispers about the so-called “Barcagate” scandal, but now the proof is here, and it paints a picture of betrayal, manipulation, and a desperate man clinging to control of one of the greatest football clubs in history. And at the centre of this storm lies the name of Pep Guardiola, the beloved coach who gave Barcelona their golden era but somehow became a target of the very man who should have been protecting the club’s legacy.

The story begins back in 2021, when Bartomeu was arrested as part of an investigation into corruption and shady activities at the club. He was later released conditionally, but suspicion lingered like smoke after a fire. Nobody knew the full truth, but now, in 2025, the police have finally pieced together the evidence that shows what really happened. According to reports, Bartomeu was not just running Barcelona as president. He was secretly paying a company called Nicestream to run smear campaigns on social media. Fake accounts, fake news, calculated lies – all designed to attack those he saw as rivals. And these rivals were not just other candidates for the presidency like Joan Laporta and Victor Font. They even included Pep Guardiola, the legendary coach who had already left Barcelona years before Bartomeu even took charge.

Why would Bartomeu do such a thing? Why attack a man who brought 14 trophies to the club in just four years, including the historic treble of 2009? The answer seems to lie in Bartomeu’s obsession with power. Guardiola was close to Joan Laporta, the man Bartomeu replaced, and their relationship was seen as a threat. If Guardiola’s name remained too powerful, if Laporta’s influence continued to shine, then Bartomeu feared his own position at the top would crumble. So instead of honouring Guardiola’s legacy, he tried to destroy it.

The police uncovered WhatsApp messages between Bartomeu and his right-hand man, Jaume Masferrer. These messages showed how closely Bartomeu was following Nicestream’s activity. He wasn’t an innocent bystander. He was actively monitoring the smear campaigns, receiving regular updates on how the fake accounts were working to damage the reputation of Laporta, Font, and Guardiola. It wasn’t just dirty politics. It was betrayal of the highest order.

Nicestream reportedly created 226 fake accounts. These accounts spread negativity, attacked reputations, and pushed false narratives. Imagine scrolling through social media as a Barcelona fan, seeing criticism and abuse aimed at Guardiola or Laporta, not knowing that it was all part of a calculated plan. This was manipulation not only of rivals but of the very fans who loved the club. Bartomeu was playing with the emotions of millions just to protect his own image.

Pep Guardiola, of course, was long gone from Barcelona by then. He left in 2012, after giving everything he had to the club. He took a break, then joined Bayern Munich in 2013, and later Manchester City in 2016, where he has built another dynasty. He was no longer directly involved with Barcelona’s politics, but his name carried weight. His golden era with Messi, Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets, and Piqué was remembered as the greatest football the world had ever seen. And that legacy, that influence, scared Bartomeu so much that he paid to attack it.

This revelation cuts deep because Guardiola’s relationship with Barcelona was always built on love and identity. He was a player from La Masia, the academy product who grew into a leader. As coach, he didn’t just win; he changed football. To think that someone from inside the club, a president no less, would turn around and attack him for political gain feels like an act of betrayal against the very soul of Barcelona.

Fans are outraged. Social media has exploded with anger since the news broke. Supporters feel cheated, manipulated, and ashamed that their club’s name was dragged into such darkness. For years they suspected corruption, but the idea that Guardiola, their hero, was targeted hits harder than anything else. Many are now demanding that Bartomeu be held accountable, that he be banned from football, that his name be erased from the club’s history books.

But there is also another layer to this story. It reveals the deep cracks that had formed within Barcelona during those years. The glory days of Guardiola’s football had ended, and instead of building a new future with honesty, the club fell into chaos. Financial mismanagement, poor signings, broken trust – all under Bartomeu’s leadership. The smear campaign is just one part of a much larger picture of decay. While Messi was carrying the team on the pitch, behind the scenes the leadership was rotting from within.

The saddest part is that Guardiola himself probably never asked for any of this. He left Barcelona gracefully, saying he needed rest, saying he had given all he could. He never once publicly attacked Bartomeu, never once tried to interfere in the politics. But Bartomeu saw shadows where there were none, and he chose to fight ghosts with lies. That paranoia, that obsession, has now been exposed for the world to see.

Now, football fans across the globe are asking: what happens next? Will Bartomeu face further legal consequences? Will Barcelona’s current leadership issue an apology to Guardiola? Will the club try to repair the broken trust with fans? These questions linger like heavy clouds over Camp Nou.

For Guardiola, perhaps this news will not surprise him. He has always known the world of football politics is dirty. But for the fans who adored him, this is salt in old wounds. They had already suffered through the departure of Messi, the financial crisis, and the fall from Europe’s elite. To learn that their hero was secretly attacked by their own president feels like one betrayal too many.

And yet, in a strange way, this scandal also reminds everyone of Guardiola’s greatness. No smear campaign could ever erase what he did. No fake account could ever rewrite the nights when Barcelona dominated Europe with pure poetry on the pitch. If anything, Bartomeu’s desperate actions only highlight how powerful Guardiola’s legacy truly is. Even years after leaving, his shadow was strong enough to terrify a president. That is how you know his impact will live forever.

The Barcagate scandal is still unfolding, and more details may yet emerge. But one thing is already clear: Josep Maria Bartomeu’s name will go down in history not as a leader of Barcelona but as the man who betrayed it. And Pep Guardiola, once again, stands taller than his critics, untouched by the lies, remembered only for the beauty he gave the game.

This is not just a story about politics. It is a warning of what happens when football loses its soul to greed and fear. Barcelona was once “Més que un club” – more than a club. But under Bartomeu, it became less. Now, with truth finally revealed, maybe the healing can begin.

But the scars of betrayal run deep. And for Pep Guardiola, who gave his heart to Barcelona, to know that he was a target of his own club’s president – that may be the deepest scar of them all.