Argentina football chief slams FIFA dismissal

Hoboken (United States) (AFP) – The president of the Argentina Football Association (AFA) angrily lashed out at FIFA on Saturday after the sport’s world governing body removed him from office and appointed a committee to take charge of the organization’s affairs.

FIFA on Friday said it had appointed a normalization committee that would see AFA President Luis Segura removed from his job in the latest twist to the organization’s troubled recent history. 

The FIFA committee will be in charge of running the AFA and organizing elections for its new leadership following a governance crisis triggered by the death of long-serving chief Julio Grondona in 2014. 

However, the ousted Segura slammed the FIFA move on Saturday in New York, where Argentina are preparing for Sunday’s Copa America Centenario final against Chile, decrying it as an “unforgivable mistake.”

“Argentina is to play a final on Sunday and FIFA announces on Friday that they are appointing a normalization committee,” Segura told reporters at Argentina’s hotel in Hoboken, New Jersey.

“It seems a nonsense, madness, an unforgivable mistake,” said the official, adding that he would return to Argentina on Saturday and miss the final. 

“I’m going today,” said Segura, whose term ends on June 30. 

Grondona’s death led to a farcical leadership election last year which ended in a 38-38 draw between Segura and television personality Marcelo Tinelli — even though only 75 delegates were able to vote.