Argentina: Court blocks Milei move to privatize football

An attempt by Argentinian President Javier Milei to allow the country's member-controlled football clubs to pass into private ownership by emergency decree was blocked by a Buenos Aires court on Monday.

Milei came to power in December pledging to tackle Argentina's economic crisis by making massive cuts to public spending and privatizing whole swathes of the public sector.

And the right-wing libertarian wants to apply the approach to football, too, with Argentina's most popular sport ravaged by poor financial management and corruption, and in need of investment in key infrastructure.

What is the controversy about?

But the legal status of Argentinian football clubs as "asociaciones civiles" – non-profit civil associations – with boards and presidents elected by tens of thousands of members, can put off private investors, who wouldn't be able to control what is done with their money.

However, that status also affords the clubs immense socio-cultural value which goes far beyond football; many clubs play central roles in their communities, with the professional football operations helping to fund other sports within the club, and even other cultural and educational pursuits.

This was the argument made by the Argentinian Football Association (AFA), which had appealed against Milei's emergency decree. It insisted that it operated a "solid model" and complained about "the obvious interference of the state in private entities" which it said "violated countless articles of the constitution."

Judge Elpidio Portocarrero Tezanos Pinto agreed and on Monday temporarily annulled the provisions of the decree "until a final ruling is issued," reasoning:

"No person who has gone through the life of a sports and social club, in any of its economic dimensions – including free of charge – cannot deny the transcendental importance it has had for their development."

Argentinian football split over investors

Argentina's men's team may be the reigning world champions at international level, having beaten France in the World Cup final in Qatar in 2022, but the domestic game has slipped far behind regional rivals Brazil, with Argentinian clubs increasingly forced to sell their best players.

For Milei, who has criticized the "poverty model" of Argentinian football on numerous occasions, the solution is privatization, including at his own club, Buenos Aires giants Boca Juniors. "No more poverty socialism," he posted on the social platform X on July 12.

In December, just a week after the start of his presidency, Milei took part in club elections to elect a new chairman.

Amid boos and jeers from other members, Milei voted for former Argentinian president Mauricio Macri, now Milei's coalition partner and also an advocate of privatization, but the election was won by former Argentinian international and Boca legend Juan Riquelme.

He warned that "these people want to take over the club and privatize it. Then there will never be elections here ever again."

Other Argentinian footballing legends are split on the privatization issue. Former Atletico Madrid striker Sergio Aguero, who came through the youth ranks at Independiente, just outside Buenos Aires, has proposed the Abu Dhabi-backed "City Football Group," to which his other former club Manchester city belongs, as an investor.

Upon hearing the suggestion, President Milei praised Aguero for his "extraordinary intelligence," but Andres Ducatenzeiler, the president of Independiente when Aguero was at the club, raged: "Independiente paid for your books so that you could even go to school! And now you want to privatize the club? You're having a laugh aren't you?"

German model a solution?

On the other hand, former Argentina international and Lazio, Manchester United and Inter Milan midfielder Juan Sebastian Veron, who is now chairman of Estudiantes, has advocated for a model similar to Germany's so-called "50+1" club ownership rule.

The 50+1 rule allows German football clubs to spin off their professional football operations into separate, commercial entities in which the parent clubs and their members must retain at least 50% of the voting rights, plus one voting share.

But even this appears unsatisfactory to both Argentinian club members who are opposed to any form of privatization, and investors who would want full control over their investments.

mf/wmr (EFE, EPD)