Six months before the World Cup where Argentina will defend the title won in Qatar 2022, justice is moving quickly against the president of the Argentine Football Federation (AFA), Claudio. Chiqui Wall. This Tuesday, federal judge Luis Armella ordered more than thirty searches in the case opened against Tapia for alleged money laundering through the financial company Sur Finanzas. Police searched the AFA’s main headquarters in Ezeiza, a suburb of Buenos Aires, as well as those of 17 clubs and private homes. The judge is seeking information on the links between Sur Finanzas and its partners with the AFA and educated clubs.
The financial institution investigated belongs to businessman Ariel Vallejo, close to Tapia. In 2024, it was an official sponsor of the national football league and the Argentine national team and also participated in many club operations. The government of Javier Milei, through the General Directorate of Taxes, denounced Sur Finanzas last month for allegations of evasion and money laundering.
Among the clubs studied are Independiente, Argentinos Juniors, Morón, Excursionistas, Los Andes, Deportivo Armenio, Banfield, Barracas Central, Acassuso, Brown de Adrogué and Platense.
At the same time, justice is moving forward against Tapia for a second complaint, which accuses him of being the true owner of a luxurious 10-hectare property in Pilar, in the northern suburbs of the Argentine capital. Investigators are trying to determine whether the AFA president used two front men and a corporate network to hide that the property belonged to him.
The proceedings against Tapia were opened amid a standoff between Argentine football leaders and the Milei government over the privatization of clubs. Milei is lobbying to open the door to sports societies (SAD), a figure prohibited by the AFA statutes. The leader of Argentine football enjoys the support of a large part of the clubs.
The political and judicial attack against Tapia has become a topic of conversation at all Argentine tables in recent weeks and has undermined the popularity of the AFA president.
Tapia brought Lionel Scaloni to the Albiceleste and under him, the team led by Lionel Messi won a World Cup and two Copa Americas in a row.
The local tournament, however, has reduced hours. Suspicions of corruption accentuate the unrest linked to the constant changes in the rules of the local tournament and the growing superiority of Brazilian clubs at the continental level. Some fans started chanting against Tapia on football fields. The surprising title that the AFA decided to give this year to Rosario Central and the excessive sanction applied to Estudiantes for refusing to give them the Champions Hall were the excuse that Milei was looking for to renew the verbal attacks against Tapia.
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