Atletico Mineiro reported in a statement that the shareholders of Sociedade Anônima de Futebol (SAF), which manages football at the club, decided, at an extraordinary general meeting (AGE) held on Friday (21), to remove Daniel Forcaro from the board of directors. The CEO, owner of Banco Master, has been in pre-trial detention since November 17 due to fraud investigations at the financial institution.
“The decision arises from facts known to the public that have created obstacles to the regular exercise of its functions, as stipulated in the internal management rules. The seat on the Board of Directors will remain vacant until further deliberations at the general meeting of shareholders,” the memorandum issued by Atletico Mineiro read.
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Forcaro, a major shareholder in Atletico’s SAF, owns 26.9% of Galo Holding’s SAF lineup and has a smaller stake than the Menin family, which owns 41.8%. Forcaro invested approximately R$300 million in SAF through the Galo Forte Fund.
SAF experts believe Forcaro’s situation has no immediate impact on Atletico. For Talita Garcez, partner at Garcez Advogados e Associados, a firm specializing in sports law, the arrest of a shareholder does not trigger automatic liability for Atletico SAF or other investors.
“The effects, in practice, tend to be reputational, for example, image degradation, with potentially questions from sponsors and the industry,” he says. “If the issue is only personal to shareholders, there is no provision for a sporting penalty for the club.”
According to her, the club must strengthen its governance mechanisms and adopt a permanent due diligence policy towards investors and partners. “This means pre-screening integrity, financial viability and reputational history, from the moment a shareholder comes on board,” says Garces.
Cristiano Cos, founding partner responsible for the field of sports law at CCLA Advogados, believes that this fact could have significant indirect consequences, especially if there is a suspicion of an illicit source of resources contributed by the SAF.
“There is a risk of judicial blocking of the actions of the investigated shareholders, reputational impacts, pressure to strengthen governance and the potential need to replace jobs if he occupies a strategic position,” says the lawyer. “The dynamics of the entire company will also depend heavily on the content and rituals set out in Atletico’s bylaws and any shareholder agreements that bind and bind the shareholders.”
Regarding possible sporting sanctions, Kaus stressed that the club cannot be subject to sporting sanction, recalling that FIFA and the CBF only sanction sporting institutions when there is a link between the crime and sporting activity – such as fixing results, using the club in illegal football-related practices or direct participation of club agents in events.
Regarding possible actions by the CVM, Garcés explains that the authority can initiate administrative sanctions procedures to investigate possible violations of capital market rules, if it identifies signs of irregularities related to the fund.
“During this investigation, the Securities Commission may impose administrative sanctions, such as fines, warnings or disqualification of directors and administrators. If elements are found indicating more serious crimes, the Authority may refer the case to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, which will decide whether to file a general civil suit or other applicable measures,” says Garcés.