FIFA Warned That South American Teams Are Making Dodgy Trades

FIFA received new information about player transfers in South America as football's ruling body "looks into the €19M ($23.8M) trade of Brazilian striker known as 'Hulk' to Porto," according to Alex Duff of BLOOMBERG. Argentina's federal tax agency wrote to the football authority last week to say that the country's players are being traded "through seven of the smaller professional clubs in Uruguay and two in Chile to avoid paying tax, and that sometimes transfer fees pass through offshore companies." FIFA, which is trying to improve regulation of the $3B transfer market, said in an email that it "received a letter from Argentine authorities about the matter." FIFA has looked at an arrangement that allows Hulk, whose real name is Givanildo Vieira de Sousa, and other Brazilian players to move to European teams via Club Atletico Rentistas, a Montevideo-based club for which they never play a game. The agency said that the nine teams include Uruguay's Club Atletico Fenix and Chile's Club Deportivo Union San Felipe (BLOOMBERG, 8/29).