President Javier Milei denies ties with AFA chief Claudio Tapia amid US investigation

President Javier Milei told the streaming program La Casa that he has no contact with Claudio “Chiqui” Tapia, the president of the Argentine Football Association (AFA), and that he does not intervene in the judicial proceedings involving the federation. He said the government will not pressure the courts and that “the Justice must act with total freedom.”

Milei’s remarks come as prosecutors in the United States examine alleged financial irregularities linked to the AFA. A grand jury in Miami is reviewing whether AFA officials and a group of allied businessmen used the U.S. company TourProdEnter LLC – owned by theatre entrepreneur Javier Faroni and his wife Erica Gillette – to channel roughly 300 million USD in funds since 2021. Tapia is under a travel ban in Argentina, with a special exemption for the World Cup, and faces a civil suit in Miami. The investigation also includes former AFA treasurer Pablo Toviggino and other directors for alleged tax evasion and use of false invoices.