FILE PHOTO: Football - Barnsley v Derby County - npower Football League Championship - Oakwell - 12/13 - 16/4/13 Barnsley flag Mandatory Credit: Action Images / Craig Brough
(Reuters) - English third-tier club Barnsley ended their sponsorship agreement with cryptocurrency site HEX.com on Friday after an investigation into homophobic social media posts allegedly made by the representatives of the firm.
Barnsley announced the deal with HEX.com last week and had the firm's logo on their front of their shirts in Saturday's 1-0 win over Cheltenham Town in League One.
"Following recent events and a subsequent investigation, the Club has assessed its relationship with its front of shirt sponsor and has taken steps to end that relationship with immediate effect," the club said in a statement.
"The HEX.com logo will not appear on the team's kits going forward. Further comment will be issued in due course."
Homphobic tweets from two individuals credited by HEX.com's Brent Morrissey when the deal went through circulated on Twitter after the announcement and were highlighted by Barnsley supporters.
The club said on Tuesday they were "investigating the background to these posts". Morrissey released a statement https://twitter.com/BrentMorrissey/status/1557449789922574338 on Twitter on Wednesday saying the two individuals were not associated with HEX.com or the deal "in any official or legal capacity".
Cryptocurrencies are not currently regulated in Britain.
(Reporting by Hritika Sharma in Hyderabad; Editing by Christian Radnedge)
