Bad boy Bedoya still seeing red
March 24 – Colombia’s Gerardo Bedoya, widely regarded as the world’s dirtiest footballer, quickly maintained his bad boy reputation in his first game as a senior coach.
South America
Neymar gets guilty verdict for tax fraud and told to stump up €45.9m
By Samindra Kunti
March 21 – Brazil and Barcelona player Neymar has been convicted of tax fraud and ordered to pay €45.9 million in fines and back-taxes.
Show us the money: Texeira loses bank privacy appeal
By Samindra Kunti
March 15 – The former president of the Brazilian FA (CBF), Ricardo Teixeira, is fighting what appears to be a losing battle against the parliamentary inquiry (CPI) led by senator Romario into corruption in Brazilian football. His request to protect bank secrecy has been denied.
Brazil’s CBF chiefs maintain refusal to work with corruption inquiry
By Samindra Kunti
March 11 – When Carlos Dunga, Brazil’s head coach, called up his squad for the World Cup qualifiers against Uruguay and Paraguay respectively earlier this week, the interim president of the CBF, the Brazilian FA, Antonio Nunes (pictured) mockingly responded to a reporter’s question about Nunes’s possible cooperation with the parliamentary inquiry (CPI) into the business dealings of his organisation.
Paulista calls in Sportradar to run match-fixing detection system in Brazil
March 20 – For the first time on the continent, a South America football rightsholder has enlisted the services of a match-fixing detection service.
Brazilian players on the breadline, finds CBF report
By Samindra Kunti
February 26 – Brazilian governing body, the CBF, has released a report highlighting the inequality in wages between football players in Brazil’s domestic game. In 2015, 96 % of Brazil’s football players had a ‘maximum’ salary of just €1,150.
Brazilian tax police seize Neymar’s yacht, jet and properties
February 17 – Brazilian authorities have frozen assets worth almost $50 million belonging to their Barcelona star Neymar over alleged tax evasion according to local media.
Figueredo trades $10m in assets in bid to reduce jail time and stay safe
By Mark Baber
February 8 – Former president of the South American Football Confederation and former FIFA vice-President Eugenio Figueredo has agreed to hand over more than $10 million in stocks and property in a deal to reduce his punishment, according to Uruguayan prosecutor Juan Gomez.
Argy bargy ends in sanctions for the fighting 15 as FA cracks down on violence
February 5 – The Argentine FA has sanctioned 15 players after a pre-season friendly between Estudiantes and arch-rivals Gimnasia La Plata was abandoned following a mass brawl.
Neymar now faces Brazil courts over new tax cheat claims
February 4 – Brazilian star Neymar, already embroiled in a legal case over his move to Barcelona, is now facing separate allegations of tax evasion.
CONMEBOL exec quits over cut in Boca Juniors’ mustard gas attack sanction
February 3 – The vice-president of CONMEBOL’s disciplinary committee has resigned in protest at the governing body’s top brass reducing Boca Juniors’ stadium ban for crowd violence from eight games to two.
Brazilian powerplay: New league kicks off challenging CBF’s divinity
By Samindra Kunti
January 29 – Last wednesday a new club competition the ‘Primeira Liga’ got underway in Brazil. The tournament doesn’t represent Brazil’s very own 1992 breakaway Premier League moment, but could be an important milestone in the development of the domestic game.
CONMEBOL pledges bloc vote to Europe’s Infantino
By Andrew Warshaw
January 29 – Gianni Infantino appears to have stolen a march on his rival candidates for the FIFA presidency by gaining the support of South American federations who comprise 10 of the 209 voting countries.
Paraguyan Dominguez takes the hottest seat in football as president of CONMEBOL
By Mark Baber
January 27 – Alejandro Dominguez of Paraguay was elected unopposed as president of CONMEBOL, the governing body of South American football, after Wilmar Valdez of Uruguay withdrew his candidacy.
FIFA fines South American federations for homophobic fans
January 14 – Evidence that South America is still some way behind when it comes to discrimination has been underlined by FIFA fining Argentina, Chile, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay for homophobic chanting by their national teams’ fans.