Claudio Tapia was elected as the new president of the Argentine FA following a vote on Wednesday, according to Ben Spratt of GOAL. Long-standing former AFA President Julio Grondona died in '14, with his replacement, Luis Segura, "resigning when he was charged with fraud" in June. Tapia was elected with 40 of the 43 votes in his favor. He said, "I thank all those who worked to reach this moment. It is necessary that each of the leaders join us in this democracy." Of Lionel Messi's four-game suspension, Tapia said, "Messi doesn't need to worry. We will do whatever we can to reduce his suspension -- it's unfair" (GOAL, 3/29). REUTERS' Ampuero & Lobianco reported Tapia is the president of third division club Barracas Central. He was "the sole candidate in the election" and will serve a four-year term, "but some of the power behind the scenes is expected to be wielded" by his deputy, Daniel Angelici, who is president of Boca Juniors and was a "key figure" in promoting Tapia's candidacy. Tapia said that it was "imperative" that everyone got behind "beleaguered" national team coach Edgardo Bauza. Tapia added that it "was crucial to give Bauza backing if he was to help Argentina rise from fifth place in the South American qualifying campaign." Only the top four teams qualify automatically for the 2018 World Cup, while the fifth-placed team "must go into an intercontinental playoff" against a team from Oceania. The AFA has been under the administration of a FIFA-appointed Normalization Committee, headed by Argentine Armando Perez, since June (REUTERS, 3/30). In Buenos Aires, Daniel Lagares wrote there are "10 keys" to the challenge that Tapia faces. Tapia and Angelici "need a strategy to work with Argentine President Mauricio Macri's government." Argentine clubs owe 1.15B Argentine pesos ($70M) to the AFA. Is there a "master plan that is applicable to all the clubs or will it depend on the management of each club?" (CLARÍN, 3/30).
