Angel Di Maria: Argentine Football Fan Sentenced After Disturbing Intimidation Campaign
An Argentine court has sentenced a football supporter for threatening Angel Di Maria and his family in an attempt to prevent the former Argentina star from returning home.
Sergio Di Vanni, 45, was convicted in Rosario on Wednesday for organising acts of intimidation against the footballer’s relatives to discourage his return to Rosario Central.
The threats occurred in March 2024, when Di Maria was playing for Portuguese club Benfica but considering a move back to his boyhood team in Argentina.
Prosecutors said the campaign included gunshots fired near a gated community where Di Maria owns property and a disturbing threat involving his sister’s estate agency.
A pig’s head bearing a bullet wound was reportedly dumped outside the agency, accompanied by a message threatening the footballer’s daughter, raising serious concerns about his family’s safety.
The intimidation initially forced Di Maria to abandon his plans to return to Argentina, as concerns over the safety of his wife and children influenced his decision.
Another suspect, 25-year-old Belen Gutierrez, received a three-and-a-half-year prison sentence in June after reaching a plea agreement over her alleged role in the incident.
A third suspect remains in pre-trial detention, while prosecutors alleged that the perpetrators received four million Argentine pesos, approximately $2,600, to carry out the threats.
Investigators linked the incident to an internal power struggle within the supporters’ group associated with Newell’s Old Boys, one of Rosario’s biggest football clubs.
Rosario Central and Newell’s Old Boys share a fierce rivalry, with Newell’s also known as the childhood club of Argentine football legend Lionel Messi.
Di Vanni’s prison sentence also covers separate offences connected to his involvement with the supporters’ group, according to information presented during the court proceedings.
Despite the threats, Di Maria eventually returned to Rosario Central in 2025. The 38-year-old has since helped the club secure the Argentine title at the end of that year.
