The Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) is proposing that foreigners arriving in the country to play sports be subject to prior advice and have a responsible person identified, according to a document Lusa accessed on Monday.
These measures, presented this Monday at a meeting convened by the governing body, come a week after the Immigration and Borders Service (SEF) searched a football academy in Riba de Ave, in the municipality of Vila Nova de Famalicão, owned by the company BSports , which would be managed by Mário Costa, former president of the board of the League’s General Assembly, in the context of the human trafficking investigation.
During this meeting, which aims to set up an informal working group to present proposals to the National Sports Council, the FPF presented several preventive measures, such as that any foreigner coming to Portugal, to a club or academy, needs prior advice from the sports federation of the modality in question.
According to the FPF document that Lusa had access to, handed over to the Secretary of State for Youth and Sports, João Paulo Correia, foreigners (if accepted) would be required to identify a guardian or person responsible for the conditions of residence in Portugal, as he must be a Portuguese citizen or have a visa to stay in the national territory.
The body that supervises Portuguese football also thinks it is desirable that points of contact be established between associations and authorities.
“It is considered that the risk of human trafficking and fraud should be prevented, at a time prior to their entry into the national territory, and the documents required for this should be reviewed and visas allocated exclusively for the practice of amateur sports should be withdrawn.”, still proposes the FPF.
Following the BSports football academy searches, the SEF charged defendants in five companies and two Portuguese citizens, one of them Mário Costa, who resigned as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the General Assembly of the Portuguese Professional Football League (LPFP).
In this academy, 114 young players from South America, Africa and Asia were identified, all of whom will be in an irregular situation in the country. 33 minors were removed because they were in danger, while other adults were sent to reception units.
Source: DN
