Board demand answers on Casares' son's deal with football agent | OneFootball

A group of 29 São Paulo board members submitted a request this Monday (15) to the club’s executive director of ESG, risk, and compliance, Roberto Soares Armelin, asking for an analysis regarding a possible conflict of interest involving president Júlio Casares. The request is based on the business relationship between the president’s son, Júlio César Casares Filho, and the player agent Aref Abdullatif. The information was initially published by ANOTAÇÕES TRICOLORES (learn more about their work by clicking here).

The document cites the Tricolor Integrity Program, launched in February 2021 as a priority of the Casares administration, with the promise to implement compliance rules and strengthen transparency as a guiding principle. In light of this, the board members question whether the business relationship could compromise these commitments.

According to the request, “considering the news report, substantiated by documents obtained from the São Paulo State Board of Trade, about the partnership involving Mr. Aref Abdullatif, a football player agent, and Mr. Júlio César Casares Filho, son of the president of São Paulo Futebol Clube, in the company Dospets Comércio e Serviços para Animais Ltda., since December 5, 2019, which, at least in theory, could constitute a conflict of interest,” it would be up to compliance to evaluate the case.

Aref Abdullatif is the sole partner of Kah Esportes e Entretenimento Ltda., a company that, at the beginning of the Casares administration in 2021, represented only one player. Since then, according to the document, 21 athletes from the club’s youth categories have passed through the company, although some have already left the club: Maioli, Gabriel Tchelin, Gui Lanza, Davi Jesus, Jorginho, Davi Stenio, Biel, Pedro Ícaro, Fernandinho, Jorginho Albuquerque, Murillo Concimo, Miguel Bernardo, Netin Alves, Davi Fraga, Pedro Simões, Miguel Francelino, Fernandinho Cabral, Felipe Silva, Daniel, Arthur Freitas, Dudu Vória, and Pietro Tubarão. In their request, the board members listed all the players represented by the company.

The group seeks clarification on three points: whether there are specific rules regarding conflicts of interest between executives and their family members, whether this case fits those situations, and, if so, what penalties are provided for.

The connection between Casares Filho and Abdullatif had already been revealed by ‘UOL’ in July 2023. The portal showed that the two are partners in Dospets Comércio, a company focused on the pet market. At the time, both the agent and the president’s son claimed there were no benefits from the partnership. In a statement, São Paulo said the partnership was established before Casares took office and that it had been “inactive since he was elected president,” although the company’s registration remained active with the Federal Revenue Service—at least until last month, it was still active.

The article also revealed that Kah Sports received R$ 208,000 in commissions from São Paulo in the previous season, an amount related to player signings. One of the main players represented by the company was striker Maioli, whose contract had recently been renewed, but in 2024 he was sold to APOEL, from Cyprus. The company denied any suspicion, claiming its contracts are signed in a proper manner and that it was “far from being the company with the most players at São Paulo.”

Casares Filho, according to people close to him, reportedly said he was unaware that Aref was involved in player representation when they became partners. At least at that time, in addition to handling negotiations, the agent was present in the daily life of the club’s youth categories and also represented goalkeeper Felipe Alves, who was signed in 2022.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.