Abuja – The FIFA Disciplinary Committee on Friday imposed a fine of 300,000 Swiss Francs (about £196,380) on the Argentina Football Association (AFA) and also pronounced a reprimand against it.
A statement from FIFA’s Media Office said the fine was in relation to breaches of the Regulations of Brazil 2014 FIFA World Cup and the competition’s Media & Marketing Regulations.
“Disciplinary proceedings were opened after Argentina turned up for three consecutive Match Day press conferences in the stadium with only the head coach present, instead of the required head coach, plus at least one player.
“The matches are Argentina versus Nigeria, Argentina versus Switzerland, and Argentina versus Belgium.
“The same incident occurred at the Match Day press conference prior to the semi-final match between Argentina and The Netherlands.
“After analysing all necessary elements, the FIFA Disciplinary Committee found the Argentina FA guilty.
“The Argentina FA breached article 4 paragraph 1 lit. f and article 4 paragraph 2 of the Regulations 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
“The FA also breached article 12.2 second part (i) of the competition’s Media & Marketing Regulations,’’ it said.
The statement added that the objective of the said regulations is, inter alia, to allow media and, ultimately, fans to have an opportunity to follow a team’s preparations.
“It also allows each team to have the best possible environment for those preparations.’’