What Armando Mendonça’s report says challenging Corinthians’ Nike audit | OneFootball

A report prepared by Villela & Associados Auditoria e Consultoria, a firm hired by Corinthians vice president Armando Mendonça, broadly disputes the conclusions of the internal audit that supported the request for the official’s precautionary removal and the criminal complaint filed by the São Paulo Public Prosecutor’s Office over alleged misappropriation of sports equipment supplied by Nike to the club.

The document, completed on May 2, 2026, and spanning 64 pages, was produced under the “Agreed-Upon Procedures” model, with the purpose of technically analyzing the internal report prepared by Corinthians’ Technology department, at the request of president Osmar Stabile, regarding the management of the supplier’s sports equipment inventory.

Armando Mendonça, Corinthians vice president. Photo: Reproduction.

Across 39 points, the consultancy states that the work conducted internally by the club contains methodological flaws, lacks supporting documentation, shows deficiencies in the traceability of information, and does not provide enough technical elements to support individual accountability. The report was presented by Armando Mendonça to the Corinthians board before the announcement of his 30-day leave from office.

Criticism of the internal audit methodology

One of the report’s main conclusions is that the internal audit did not fully comply with the requirements set out in the Brazilian Accounting Standards for internal audit work. According to the consultancy, the Corinthians document sets objectives but does not define the scope of the work carried out, nor does it state the audited universe or the representativeness of the samples analyzed.

Villela & Associados also says that the methodology described by the club is limited to presenting generic concepts, without detailing sampling criteria, materiality, inventory, risk assessment, cutoff testing, or other procedures normally required in audits of this nature.

The opinion also questions how statements and interviews were used to support conclusions. According to the analysis, the statements reproduced in the internal report were not accompanied by signed minutes, formalized interview records, or references to working papers that would allow their authenticity and validity as audit evidence to be verified.

Challenge regarding the 131 items attributed to the official

The most sensitive point in the report concerns the internal audit’s conclusion that Armando Mendonça removed 131 sports items between June and October 2025.

After reviewing the material request forms used by the club’s audit, the consultancy says it identified inconsistencies in attributing those products to the vice president. According to the analysis, nine of the twenty requests considered by the audit did not list Armando as the final recipient of the materials, in addition to the existence of duplicate records.

According to the document, of the 131 items attributed to the official, 97 were allegedly intended for third parties or corresponded to internal transfers between club departments, representing about 74% of the total indicated by the internal audit.

The consultancy details that these materials included transfers between storerooms, products intended for the São Paulo Football Federation, items used by members of the security team, a travel bag delivered to the legal director, materials donated to former athletes, and jerseys supplied to club sponsors.

Based on this review, the report concludes that the information used by the internal audit to attribute the 131 items to the vice president was inconsistent.

NFL jerseys

The document also addresses the commemorative jerseys produced for the NFL event held in partnership with Corinthians.

According to the consultancy, an exchange of emails that was analyzed indicates that the items were intended for staff involved in organizing the event. Villela says this information was not considered by the internal audit when assessing the movement of those materials.

Responsibility for Nike materials

Another point of the technical defense presented in the report is the claim that there is no statutory, regulatory, or administrative instrument assigning the vice president operational responsibility for the inventory of sports equipment or for Corinthians’ storeroom.

The consultancy argues that, according to the club’s organizational chart and articles 113 and 114 of the black-and-white club’s bylaws, the vice presidency has institutional functions and the role of replacing the president, without direct involvement in activities related to logistics, storage, receipt, or distribution of sports equipment.

The report also states that duties related to inventory control, storeroom management, and the supply of materials are tied to the club’s administrative and operational areas, with no hierarchical subordination to the vice president.

Villela & Associados also rejects the possibility of holding Armando Mendonça responsible for allegedly unrecorded invoices. According to the document, Corinthians’ accounting and tax processes are handled by specific departments and are submitted annually to independent external audits.

The consultancy highlights that the independent audit reports on the 2024 and 2025 financial statements did not note any qualifications related to the omission of invoices for sports equipment, an argument used to support the lack of technical grounds for directly holding the official responsible.

At the end of the procedures, Villela & Associados concludes that Corinthians’ internal report does not present sufficient documentary evidence to demonstrate Armando Mendonça’s direct participation, interference, or decision-making power over the management of Nike materials. The consultancy says it found no technical elements capable of establishing a causal link between the irregularities pointed out by the internal audit and acts committed by the vice president.

Criminal complaint and temporary leave from office

Last Wednesday (3), the Public Prosecutor’s Office filed criminal charges against Armando Mendonça for the alleged crimes of aggravated embezzlement, attempted embezzlement, aggravated theft through abuse of trust, and coercion during legal proceedings. According to the accusation, based on Corinthians’ internal audit and complementary investigations, the official allegedly appropriated 131 Nike sports items belonging to the club between June and October 2025.

The Public Prosecutor’s Office also says that Armando tried to intimidate those responsible for the internal audit through extrajudicial notices sent after the investigations began, and it also cites a phone recording attached to the case file as evidence. In his testimony, the vice president admitted removing part of the materials, but said the products were intended for institutional activities and denied any wrongdoing.

In addition to the opening of criminal proceedings, prosecutors requested precautionary measures, including the official’s temporary removal from Corinthians. At the same time, club members and councilors filed a request for his immediate precautionary removal. Given the repercussions of the case, Armando announced a 30-day leave from office.

In a statement, the official denied any involvement in misappropriating materials, said that some of the items never left the club, and that the others were distributed regularly and with documentation. Armando also declared that he is being persecuted for having reported irregularities related to the VaideBet case and said that his leave does not represent an admission of guilt, but rather a measure to protect his family and avoid further damage to Corinthians.

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