Mexico’s Secretaría Anticorrupción y Buen Gobierno has fined the Mexican Football Federation (FMF) 42,849,095 pesos for violating the country’s data-protection laws in its handling of the FAN ID digital identification system. The sanction, announced on 12 July 2026, follows an administrative investigation that found the FMF failed to adequately inform fans that their facial photographs constituted sensitive personal data and did not obtain the express written consent required by law. The authority determined that the federation relied solely on a website checkbox, without employing a handwritten or electronic signature or any other unequivocal authentication mechanism.

According to the secretariat’s resolution, those omissions denied ticket holders a fully informed decision on how their biometric information would be used and breached the principles of legality and accountability. The fine was calibrated on the gravity of the infractions, the sensitive nature of biometric data, and the FMF’s economic capacity as reflected in its 2024 annual tax declaration. While the federation has the right to appeal through the courts, the government stated it would “firmly defend” the decision, which was issued in strict conformity with the law and in protection of fundamental rights.

The FAN ID platform was introduced after the March 2022 violence between Querétaro and Atlas fans at Corregidora Stadium, with Mexico’s Liga MX president describing it as a historic step to maximise security and fan experience. The now-defunct transparency institute INAI had previously sanctioned the FMF on several occasions for similar failings. In January 2024, the newspaper El Universal reported that FMF executives had filed a complaint with INAI’s internal oversight body alleging that senior officials sought to extort World Cup tickets in exchange for reducing penalties — an episode that has shadowed the regulatory process, although no formal link to the current fine has been confirmed.

In parallel, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation has opened an inquiry into the Argentine Football Association (AFA) for suspected financial corruption, money laundering and contract forgery, Arabic-language media outlet Assabah reports, citing US and Argentine press accounts. Investigators are examining irregular transfers linked to broadcasting rights for national team matches and friendly tours held in the United States between 2018 and 2024, as well as alleged payments to shell companies in Panama and the US. The AFA has pledged cooperation, but legal analysts warn that the probe could lead to frozen bank accounts and potential disciplinary measures from FIFA if individual culpability is established.

Viewed together, the cases point to a tightening of transnational oversight of Latin American football bodies, where the rapid adoption of digital fan-identification systems and opaque commercial deals are drawing heightened attention from both domestic regulators and US authorities. The FMF now faces a legally defined window to challenge the fine before it becomes final, while the Argentine investigation is expected to progress with coordination between US federal prosecutors and the Argentine judiciary in the coming months.