Julio Grondona passes away
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
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European football is mourning senior FIFA vice-president and long-standing president of the Argentinian Football Association (AFA), Julio Grondona, who has passed away aged 82.
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The European football family is in mourning following the death on Wednesday of Julio Grondona, senior vice-president of world football's governing body FIFA and president of the Argentinian Football Association (AFA).
Julio Grondona was named head of the AFA on 6 April 1979, a position he held until his passing in Buenos Aires at the age of 82. He had been a member of FIFA's Executive Committee since 1988 – working as a key figure within the body, in particular as chairman of the Finance Committee – and also served as president of the CA Independiente club.
During his presidency, Argentina won the FIFA World Cup in 1986, and finished runners-up in 1990 and 2014.
UEFA President and FIFA vice-president Michel Platini paid tribute to Mr Grondona. "Julio Grondona was a very pleasant man," he said, "who would happily spend many hours talking about football, and I was fortunate to engage in these discussions with him."
Mr Platini added: "He was a true football lover for many, many years, and on behalf of the European football family, I would like to extend my deepest condolences to his family, and to Argentinian football."
