Buenos Aires, December 1 (NA) — The social headquarters of Banfield football club was raided this Monday in the context of a judicial investigation pointing to Sur Finanzas, the club's current main sponsor, for alleged money laundering.
The operation was ordered, as learned by the Argentine News Agency, by the Federal Court of Criminal and Correctional No. 2 of Lomas de Zamora and is part of a case analyzing economic movements carried out between 2019 and 2023.
The institution in the southern part of Greater Buenos Aires confirmed the procedure through an official statement and assured it had placed itself "at the full disposal of the justice system."
The investigation is framed within an alleged money laundering maneuver linked to Sur Finanzas, a company founded in Adrogué in 2022 and pointed out by the Justice for suspicious operations that would include the use of 74 fake companies and a total movement of $72,342 million.
In addition to the club's headquarters, the raids reached private homes and offices related to the financial company, which was also searched in its central building at Francisco Seguí 700, in Adrogué.
One of the central axes of the case revolves around the transfer of footballer Agustín Urzi, a product of Banfield's youth academy and sold to Juárez in Mexico. Even with the change of management — after Matías Mariotto's assumption in October 2024 — the Sur Finanzas logo continued to appear on the chest of the jersey.
Banfield is undergoing a judicial procedure, within which a series of raids are being carried out as a result of the investigation by the Federal Court of Criminal and Correctional No. 2 of Lomas de Zamora, for operations carried out between 2019 and 2023. The club has placed itself at the full disposal of justice, collaborating with everything necessary for the investigation to proceed.
Justice is investigating whether the operation was used as a vehicle for irregular maneuvers, for which a total of 19 raids linked to both the club and the company were requested. Sur Finanzas has played a leading role in Argentine football's economy since 2022, when it became Banfield's main sponsor during the management of then-president Eduardo Spinosa. The relationship grew over time, to the point that in 2024 the link was renewed under new terms that included the restructuring of a debt the club had with the company.
