Corruption in AFA: Justice summoned Chiqui Tapia and Pablo Toviggino for questioning over 19 billion in tax evasion and prohibited them from leaving the country
Tapia, Toviggino and other executives will not be able to leave the country
The measure is part of the complaint filed by ARCA for tax withholdings and social security contributions that were not deposited between 2024 and 2025
The Argentine Football Association (AFA) keeps adding legal problems. Economic Criminal Court Judge Diego Amarantesummoned the top authorities to an investigatory statement of the governing body of Argentine football in a case reported by Revenue Collection and Customs Control Agency (ARCA) for alleged misappropriation of taxes and social security resources.
The measure covers the nefarious president Claudio "Chiqui" Tapia, the unpresentable right-hand man, treasurer Pablo Toviggino, secretary general Cristian Malaspina, general director Gustavo Lorenzo, and former secretary general Víctor Blanco. In addition, the judge requested the investigatory statement of AFA itself as a legal entity.
The order of summons will be as follows:
Argentine Football Association and Claudio Fabián Tapia: March 5 at 10:30 and 12 respectively
Pablo Ariel Toviggino and Gustavo Roberto Lorenzo: March 6 at 10:30 and 12 respectively
Víctor Blanco Rodríguez and Cristian Ariel Malaspina: March 9 at 10:30 and 12 respectively
Citaron a ingatoria a Tapia, Toviggino y otros dirigentes de AFA
In his ruling, Amarante emphasizes that "in view of the seriousness of the acts under investigation, the severity of the potential sentence linked both to the possible legal classification that could correspond to those acts and to the application of the rules of article 55 of the Criminal Code, and with a view to guaranteeing the regular performance of the procedural acts ordered here, it is appropriate to order the prohibition on the named individuals leaving the country".
According to the complaint filed in December 2025 and later expanded, the entity allegedly withheld national taxes, such as VAT and Income Tax, and social security contributions between March 2024 and September 2025without depositing them within the legal period of 30 consecutive days. In total, the authorities are investigating 69 acts for an accumulated amount that exceeds 19.3 billion pesos.
ARCA detailed that it initially detected unpaid obligations for 7.593 billion pesos and that, after an expansion, the amount rose by an additional 11.759 billion pesos. The agency maintained that the withheld amounts "do not constitute the taxpayer's own funds, but rather third-party resources that belong to the State from the very moment of withholding", so their failure to be paid in would constitute misappropriation of public funds.
La AFA habría retenido impuestos nacionales y aportes previsionales
The accusation falls under articles 4 and 7 of the Criminal Tax Regime, which provide for prison sentences of two to six years for withholding agents who do not pay the amounts to the treasury when they exceed the established minimums. From a legal standpoint, ARCA stated that the crime is consummated with intent, understood as the knowledge of the legal duty and the real possibility of complying with it, without any special intent to misappropriate being required.
Among the evidence submitted are bank reports that would show credits to AFA accounts and the creation of time deposits in pesos and dollars, which, according to the agency, would demonstrate financial capacity to meet the obligations.
