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Football Partnerships welcomes Kenny Macleod of Celtic FC and Steven Powell of the Houston Dynamo, in the first of a two-part series.

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 Episode 41 : Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (23)

By Fabian Banchiero

Julio Grondona turned down TSC’s offer, stating that a “temporary treatment” would not “cure the illness,” and that the true market value of broadcasting rights for the Argentine League was severely undervalued by the current arrangement.

(Lest we forget, Grondona has been in power since 1979 and has negotiated and agreed to each and every contract currently in place for the AFA.)

Once again Grondona turned to the government for assistance, specifically to his ‘old friends’, President Cristina Kirchner and her husband, former President Nestor Kirchner. Conveniently, the Kirchners are political rivals of Grupo Clarin (the same largest newspaper in Argentina and owner of Television Satelital Codificada).

Nestor Kirchner became an advisor for Grondona, and they designed a plan where the government would take on the broadcasting rights for the tournament for the amount of $600 million pesos and broadcast some of the games through state-owned, Canal 7. Canal 7, however, lacks the infrastructure to broadcast all of the games and would thus plan to resell broadcasting rights to cable and private channels.

Hence, it would mainly broadcast games for Boca Juniors, River Plate, and a couple of other important matches, even absorbing some employees from TyC (namely the popular commentators). Negotiations with TSC broke down, and Grondona called an emergency meeting for all club presidents and presented a ‘new deal’ which included breaching the current contract with TSC.

The parties reached a unanimous decision and approved. The notion of government involvement, however – particularly for sport, in a country that has been on the receiving end of a financial walloping since 2001 – was met with considerable resistance by the public.

AFA spokesman Cherquis Bialo quickly announced that there would be no deal with TSC and that there should be no ‘direct’ intervention from the government. “As of tonight the AFA is open to future negotiations to sell (the rights) as it corresponds to the price that soccer is worth,” Bialo said at a news conference. “I do not know if the state is going to fulfill some role.”

It was later announced that the deal would be agreed to with a group of investors that could be affiliated with the government.

The deal consists of $600 million pesos per year for 10 years, with $100 million pesos (US$26 million) being paid up front and going directly to Futbolistas Argentinos Agremiados (FAA), the players’ union, and the remaining $500MM (US$130 million) being paid in installments of $300 million pesos (US$78 million) to Administracion Federal de Ingresos Publicos (AFIP) for taxes.

Although it was a unanimous decision, some other clubs like Independiente and current champions, Velez Sarsfield, expressed concerns about the deal and bridging the gap with the ‘Big Two’, as Boca Juniors and River Plate would now be getting $65 million pesos (US$17 million) each from this new deal, up from $22.5 million pesos (US$5.8 million) and $25 million pesos (US$6.5 million), respectively. Further, all clubs had asked for an exit clause in case of any political changes (Kirchner ends her term in 2011) and indemnity from all financial and legal repercussions.

Grondona agreed.

TSC immediately announced legal action against AFA. The official press release from TSC read: “We will take all pertinent legal actions to protect our rights and all TV operators (free and cable) who have executed contracts. The legal action will include all damages due to this breach of contract and compensation for all investments made to guarantee TV broadcasts. These legal claims will be made against all those directly and indirectly responsible for the decision.” The lawsuit will be for the amount of $1.5 billion pesos (US$390 million) to cover the 5 years left in the current contract.

One party, silent and steadfast, has no voice in the matter. She is Argentine football, the one that Grondona claims has been the “long-time victim of greedy business” and that “the fans should be entitled to watch their pastime without having to pay”. The irony is that, whether he recognizes it or not, he represents the virus that has plagued the system. After all, he is the man responsible for all negotiations and dealings for over 30 years!

If there is a ‘bright side’ to the ‘new deal’, the ‘government’ will (supposedly) enforce ‘stricter controls’ and ‘fiscal discipline’ on all clubs, including ‘severe penalties’ in the form of disaffiliation from AFA and relegation.

In my opinion, the mixture of political feuds and economic crisis make a rotten recipe for football, especially in terms of Argentine cuisine. Echoing the words of Lower House Representative Francisco de Narvaez, of the Union Pro party, “The little money that Argentines have shouldn’t be used to finance the mismanagement of some football executives. I am against this intervention, as are the vast majority of the people.” I agree.

But a stronger voice, still, can make my point. At his retirement homage, Diego Maradona said: “Just because I made a mistake, football should not have to pay for it. I made my mistakes and paid for it, but the ball must never be stained (la pelota no se mancha).”

Thus, I – and the rest of the fans of Argentine football – implore the Grondonas and the Kirchners and the corporations of Argentina to heed the words of a national hero and not stain the ball.

Fabian Banchiero is a sports consultant specializing in Latin American football and owner of Banchiero Sports Enterprises LLC based in New York.

By billy witz

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Experienced executive Tom Fox has stepped into the role of chief commercial officer at English Arsenal.

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By Jeff Rusnak

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