On Sunday, Estudiantes became the hero of the institutional storm involving the Argentine Football Association. For the unusual episode of rejecting the traditional “Hall of Honor” that should have been awarded to the champion of the competition, the obligation of which was supposed to be specified in Circular 6625 issued by the AFC. But as El Día reported on Tuesday, that document, dated February 12, 2025 according to the AFA, raises doubts about its true origin — including suspicion that it could have been created or modified on November 23 — raising questions about the legality of its application.
According to the text of Bulletin 6625, the AFC has established a new protocol for the current season called the “Hall of Appreciation for the champion team or winner of the competition team.” Defines the main section:
“Starting from this season, a so-called ‘Hall of Honor’ will be created for the club team that was declared the champion or winner.”
– This passage must take place in the first match on the field of the supervising team.
– The procedure requires that the players of the visiting team form two parallel lines, and remain motionless and look towards the middle, while the champion team passes. Also expressly excluded are “gestures of ridicule or provocation, offensive expressions, statements directed at the audience, referees or competitors, or any other situation that distorts the spirit of the confession.”
– It is warned that “any non-compliance” may lead to “penalties stipulated in the Disciplinary Code.”
In other words, the bulletin aims to create a formal obligation for clubs facing the champion in their first home match, even indicating prohibited behavior in front of the concourse.
Has the document been changed?
The controversy flared when it was revealed that the PDF of Bulletin 6625 provided metadata indicating that it had been created on “Sunday 23 November” at 7:21pm, and not in February, as the date declared by the AFA shows. These details led to the question of whether the rule had been drawn up retrospectively – perhaps to justify the punishment – rather than published before the event she organized.
The club denounced that this apparent amendment contradicted the official version. In turn, the Association insisted through a statement that Bulletin 6625 was issued on February 12, 2025 and that its numbering and date are consistent with other bulletins (for example, 6661 dated April 3, 2025) to exclude amendments.
This game of dates, files and versions generates a unique situation: while Pincha suggests that the penalty is intended to be applied to a clear, retrospective – or at least justified in hindsight – rule, the AFA asserts that all is well.
Veron Tapia and Trigger Battle
The conflict has a background: the political dispute that Juan Sebastian Veron had with Chiqui Tapia for some time. Now it all started this Sunday, when Estudiantes visited Rosario Central, and it was up to them to create the Hall of Honor for the league champion, by decree of the AFC. However, when the Canala team entered the field, the white and red players formed the two striped lines, but then turned around en masse – refusing to salute – as a sign of protest against the AFC’s decision. It was learned that the Pincha leaders warned Di Maria and Bron of what would happen, and that this was not an action against the Rosario players but against the Argentine football authorities.
In this context, the leadership headed by Veron said that the vote that approved this measure within the Executive Committee of the Argentine Football Association was never implemented, which invalidates the request from their point of view. As a result, an internal file was opened to determine whether it was appropriate to punish the club or its players for not adhering to the protocol set out in the bulletin.
What penalties are you considering and what could happen
Bulletin No. 6625, when stating that “any non-compliance” with the procedure will be subject to sanctions, refers to the AFC Disciplinary Code. If the club or players are found to have not respected this provision, they may face action ranging from fines to player suspensions or points reductions, depending on the seriousness of the non-compliance and the disciplinary body’s interpretation.
In the case of students, the possibility of applying sporting or economic sanctions is being evaluated, although the specific penalty has not yet been announced. Part of the debate revolves around the validity of the bulletin from its publication until the time of the match, which increases the complexity of imposing retroactive sanctions.
The fact is that beyond the specific conflict, this situation brings to the table structural problems of transparency and legitimacy within the Central Asia Agreement. The appearance of an institutional bulletin accompanied by metadata indicating that it was created after the official date raises questions about internal sanctioning processes in Argentine football. On the other hand, for Estudiantes and other clubs, the implementation of rules that seem to appear “quickly” opens the way for challenges and tensions with the parent company of the sport.
At the same time, this incident contains reputational risks: the Argentine Football Association must maintain its authority and organizational legitimacy, while the clubs must ensure that the rules that apply to them are duly published and known in a timely manner. And everything is happening in the context of a tournament in which countless doubts about the help of referees are linked to the leaders of the AFC, including Tapia himself.
In this way, AFA Bulletin 6625 aims to introduce a new protocol: the Champion’s Hall of Honor. But what should have been a respected tradition became the subject of controversy when Estudiantes broke the gesture and serious doubts were raised about the date and authenticity of the leaflet. Beyond the punishment that could be applied to the club – if it were a matter of applying to the Disciplinary Court – this incident reveals a rift between the regulations, institutional times and the management of Argentine football, which deserves attention.