Award-Winning Footballers Accused of Promoting Sham NFT Project

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• Elite footballers have been accused of promoting a sham NFT project, Shirtum
• The footballers were named in a fraud case in a Barcelona court
• Shirtum reportedly vanished with over $3.4 million in investor funds

Six elite footballers, including World Cup winners, have been named in a fraud case that accuses them of promoting a sham NFT project called Shirtum. The case was filed in a Barcelona court, with the project accused of vanishing with over $3.4 million in investor funds. According to prosecutors, the project relied on endorsements from footballers to enhance its popularity and attract investors, whose funds ultimately ended up in the operators’ pockets instead of improving the project.

World Cup Winner Involved

Some of those who promoted the platform include World Cup winner Lucas Ocampos and former Barcelona player Javier Saviola. According to the victims, the footballers promoted Shirtum Europa SLU with the NFTs featuring the players’ images.

Shirtum presented the NFTs as rare collectibles, with some retailing at over $500. Despite claiming exclusivity and having a high price tag, the collectibles weren’t tradable on any platform. 

The project described participating footballers as founders to improve its appeal among investors. The victims also said the project’s creators coined a corporate structure that made it hard to hold them accountable for any losses. 

To reportedly evade being asked questions on the usage of funds, the project claimed it had been hacked but didn’t produce a police report to support the claim. The footballers later removed promotional content from their social media pages, and the project faded from the limelight.

Settlement Is an Option

The case comes two months after the court allowed NBA star Shaquille O’Neal to pay $11 million as a settlement to end a case where Astrals NFT investors accused him of abandoning the project, even though he wasn’t the creator.

It also comes a month after Hashling NFT investors sued the project’s founders for misusing project funds. Last year, two Californian men were charged with defrauding NFT investors of $22 million.

With the Shirtum NFT project victims including the footballers in their case, it’s likely the footballers will seek an out-of-court settlement.