This column mentioned before that the Argentine Football Association (AFA) hung onto this money for a time, possibly earning interest on it from banks, and then paid clubs with post-dated cheques which the clubs, needing cash urgently, had to cash at certain places which then a percentage off the top. AFA, then under the control of now deceased president Julio Grondona, lent a lot of money to clubs. Of 170 clubs directly affiliated to AFA only 30 clubs are debt-free. This will mean that clubs will receive even less money, but the old saying that, “A rich AFA and poor clubs,” is no longer true. All lower division clubs have joined them, but then some C Division clubs decided to play.

Source: Bueno Aires Herald October 07, 2016 04:18 UTC