Soccer players, members of technical bodies, fans and various organizations mobilized this Monday at the Argentine Soccer Association (AFA) to demand the removal of Diego Guacci, the women’s soccer coach who was investigated by FIFA for sexual harassment .
Around a hundred people gathered in front of the AFA headquarters, in Buenos Aires, to ask that Guacci be removed from his post and that the facts denounced by five soccer players be investigated youth before FIFpro (the international organization of soccer players).
The mobilization was organized by the Feminist Football Coordinator, made up of players, fans, journalists and members of club support spaces.
“These days we are dedicated to spreading the name of Diego Guacci because until the ruling on Monday (23 in May), when FIFA makes his name public, he was anonymous to preserve the investigation, although we all already knew who he was. We wanted it to be clear who he is and that he currently continues to hold a position within Argentine soccer in the women’s youth group,” Rafaela Carignani, a member of the Coordinator, told Efe from the door of the AFA.
“In May of 2021 FIFPro makes the complaint public and the AFA says in a statement that it cannot support the investigation because they did not know the names of neither the defendant nor the complainants. This week, already knowing, we demand that the AFA remove this technician from the positions he is currently occupying“, he added.
FIFPro received complaints from five youth players, who denounced that Guacci sexually harassed them. FIFA carried out an investigation but concluded that the underage soccer players did not provide sufficient evidence.
The AFA announced last Friday the lawyer Paula Ojeda, a specialist in Gender Equality, as the new manager of the Department of Equality and Gender.
Ojeda assured on Saturday, in an interview with the newspaper Clarín, that he did not agree with FIFA’s decision and that he was going to “ recommend” that Guacci be removed from his position, who directs the women’s soccer of the Buenos Aires club Defensa y Justicia.
“Paula’s thing is a breakthrough, without a doubt. She is a great colleague with whom we have had occasional dialogues and exchanges in the Coordinator. Paula is a pioneer in what has to do with the protocols of gender violence in soccer“Carignani said.
Among the hundred people who approached the AFA and blocked the street were players from various clubs, fan groups, and women’s soccer commentators and commentators.
Also present was Mónica Santino, ex-soccer player, technical director and founder of La Nuestra Fútbol Feminista, declared “outstanding sports personality” by the Legislature of Buenos Aires.
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