In football there are symptoms and the Argentine disease

History is not wrong. In 1978, this writer asked João Havelange – then president of FIFA – whether he was interested in becoming president of Brazil. His response was more than eloquent: “This is impossible. Football opens the offices of every powerful man and woman in the world. On the other hand, the Brazilian presidency does not do that.”

Claudio “Cheque” Tapia and his followers certainly did not even imagine that the unprecedented and extraordinary champion title they bestowed on Rosario Central would generate the footballing and political earthquake that shakes the Argentine Football Association today. This is what usually happens when power is exercised with impunity. This absolute and non-punitive management of the Argentine Football Association goes back to the administration of Julio Grondona, who has been at the head of the association for 35 years. In case anyone hasn’t noticed, Tapia is aspiring to something similar. “I still have many more years to go” in office, he said defiantly amid Thursday’s celebration.

This ring fits Miley like a glove. It must be remembered that the attack on the leadership of the AFC began as soon as the current government began its administration. The idea of ​​sports public limited companies has been around for years here. Lack of funds for the vast majority of clubs has meant the continued flight of quality players from poor local football. The national team, which is Tapia’s protective shield, is an example of this.

“Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely,” says Lord John Emmerich and Edward Dahlberg Acton. This is what we see in the Asian Football Confederation, in which the absolute power of its president is allowed through the complicit silence of the rest of the leaders. Let us not be fooled, there have been – so far – no senior football leaders who have come out in support of Estudiantes de la Plata president, Juan Sebastian Veron. This is a very Byronic thing. That is, the concept that when confronted with violations, the response is silence, as a result of the fear of suffering retaliation. Veron had a brave attitude when he confronted Tapia on his questionable dealings as the ranch boss. The entourage around him, headed by Tovigino, a not very talkative man who only knows how to spit insults via social networks due to lack of ideas, is also an example of this management of power. As fate would have it, the Andes case linked them to Diego Spagnuolo, Miguel Calvete and Maximiliano Ariel Vallejo, whose proximity to Tapia opened the doors to Sur Finanzas for clubs such as Racing, Banfield, Paracas Central, Deportivo Moron and Platense. The world is a handkerchief. A separate paragraph about Barracas’ football career, which has been questioned from all possible angles by the entire Argentine football world. Tapia was president of a club that today is in the eye of the storm not only because of his meteoric rise but also because of his vociferous non-compliance. The IGJ president confirmed that Paracas had not submitted balance sheets for ten years. The scandal has reached such a point that players end up becoming victims because few of them realize the validity of their sporting achievements. Aside from this open secret, what really matters is the background of almost all football institutions in our country: the rich leaders – the millionaires – and the poor clubs. A reality that no longer lasts.

Javier Miley’s decision not to travel to Washington for the World Cup draw ceremony should be read in more detail. The president knew that there was no possibility of signing the trade agreement with Donald Trump’s government that had been talked about for several weeks there. This is the product of all the details that still need to be refined. Traveling to Washington and returning empty-handed would have been a negative event for the government. Of course, meeting Tapia face to face and appearing smiling next to him meant a stark contrast to Millie.

Tapia’s affinity for Peronism, the opaque and suspicious aspects of his administration, and the scope of corruption surrounding the AFC make him the perfect enemy of the government, whose internal affairs, on the other hand, do not stop there. In these hours, the battlefield moved once again to the Senate. Patricia Bullrich came out with top blocks and power transitions to define Victoria Villarroel’s court. As if something else was needed, Manuel Adorni and Karina Miley came out to harshly criticize her, accusing her of preventing them from entering the Senate hall, an accusation that the Vice President denied. The break between Maile and Villarroel is complete and irreversible. They are supported only by the commitments of institutions, which, on the other hand, appear increasingly weak in the face of such a confrontation.

Speaking of institutions, the justice seems to have noticed the practical embarrassment of the trial in the notebooks case. CFK and its former officials, but also some business leaders, laughed at the times forced by the weak listening agenda. This was partially corrected and the condemned woman in the dock came out to speak about the authenticity of those notebooks. You can’t cover the sun with your hand or bet blindly on after-the-fact. The public prosecutor testified to the validity of this huge amount of evidence, and so did the repentant people with their testimony. The former president would never accept what was obvious to everyone: corruption in public works was the backbone of her government’s revenues.