Argentine Football Fan Jailed for Threatening Di Maria’s Family
Supporter Sentenced to 7.5 Years for Plot to Stop World Cup Winner’s Return to Rosario Central
ROSARIO, Argentina — An Argentine court has sentenced football supporter Sergio Di Vanni, 45, to seven and a half years in prison for orchestrating threats against football star Ángel Di María and his family in an attempt to prevent the player from returning to his boyhood club, Rosario Central.
The threats occurred in March 2024, when Di María was considering leaving Portugal’s Benfica to return to Argentina. The intimidation campaign reportedly included gunshots fired near his property and a pig’s head accompanied by a threatening message left outside an estate agency run by his sister.
Prosecutors said the threats were linked to a power struggle within the supporters’ group of rival club Newell’s Old Boys. A 25-year-old woman, Belén Gutiérrez, was sentenced to three and a half years in prison in June 2026, while another suspect remains in pre-trial detention.
Di María initially abandoned his return plans over concerns for his family’s safety but eventually joined Rosario Central in 2025. The court’s ruling highlights the serious consequences of using threats and intimidation to influence football-related rivalries.
