Federal authorities in the United States have opened a criminal inquiry into the financial operations of the Argentine Football Association, known by its Spanish acronym AFA, after discovering that more than $300 million moved through American banks over the past several years.
The probe, being conducted by the Department of Justice together with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, is examining a web of transactions that were routed through a handful of U.S. financial institutions, including Citibank, Synovus, Bank of America, JPMorgan and PNC Bank.
At the center of the scrutiny is TourProdEnter LLC, a firm owned by theater producer Javier Faroni and Erica Gillette that handled the AFA’s international commercial contracts. According to court filings cited by La Nación, the company managed at least $260 million in AFA revenue, while an additional $57 million was funneled to other entities now under review.
Investigators have begun interviewing a series of witnesses, among them businessman Guillermo Tofoni, who has been locked in a long‑standing dispute with AFA leadership, and several former officials from the administration of President Javier Milei, who may be called upon to clarify the political context of the money flows.
The inquiry also shines a light on AFA president Claudio “Chiqui” Tapia, who has publicly maintained that the federation is operating under the presumption of innocence. Tapia’s representative, Tomás Regalado, the organization’s delegate for North America, reiterated that stance during a recent forum on soccer, corruption and justice held in Miami.
Legal and Political Ramifications
The involvement of federal prosecutors Patrick Gushue and Christopher Ting in Washington, along with Michael Berger of the Southern District of Florida, underscores the multi‑jurisdictional nature of the case. Their teams are coordinating interviews across Miami, Atlanta and other hubs where the AFA’s commercial activities have been recorded.
Meanwhile, the Argentine government has yet to comment formally on the U.S. probe, though officials have indicated that any findings could influence ongoing negotiations over the sport’s international broadcasting rights and sponsorship deals.
For now, the AFA continues to operate under the radar of criminal suspicion, but the mounting pressure from Washington adds a new layer of complexity to an already turbulent period for Argentine football.