FBI investigates Argentine federation over alleged fraud and money-laundering scheme

An investigation led by the FBI and the US Department of Justice has once again put the Argentine Football Association (AFA) at the centre of attention. At issue are around 300 million dollars moved on American soil, in a series of financial operations that the authorities are trying to establish may be linked to fraud and money-laundering offences.

According to the Argentine newspaper La Nacion, citing sources with direct knowledge of the case, the investigation focuses on several transfers made by the AFA, chaired by Claudio Tapia, through TourProdEnter LLC, a company run by Javier Faroni, which brokered contracts between the federation and various sponsors and commercial partners.

Among the operations under scrutiny are 60 million dollars from Adidas and a further 40 million dollars from Warner. In total, TourProdEnter LLC is believed to have moved approximately 260 million dollars, the equivalent of about 228 million euros.

However, the US authorities are also trying to clarify the origin and purpose of other transfers valued at around 57 million dollars, approximately 50 million euros, made between the company and various entities, the reasons for which remain unexplained.

The investigation also indicates that the sums passed through bank accounts opened at several US financial institutions, including Citibank, Synovus, Bank of America, JP Morgan and PNC Bank.

Meanwhile, investigators have already heard from one of the people who reported the alleged irregularities. Last week, the businessman Guillermo Tofoni met FBI agents and US tax authorities to provide information related to the case.

The inquiries could also extend to the political sphere. The US authorities do not rule out summoning for questioning former officials linked to Argentine President Javier Milei who may have been directly or indirectly involved in the operations now under investigation.

The first complaints date back to 2024, when Argentina's Ministry of Security formally alerted the US authorities to possible illicit practices. At that time, the FBI concluded that there was not enough evidence to proceed with an investigation.

The situation changed this year, after investigators obtained new bank documents and received fresh complaints, circumstances that led the US federal authorities to reopen the case and deepen the investigation into the financial movements of the Argentine Football Association.