The key facts

  • A court in Rosario sentenced Sergio Di Vanni to 7.5 years in prison for threats against Ángel Di María and his family
  • The threats in March 2024 were aimed at preventing the player from returning from Benfica to Rosario Central
  • Earlier in the case, Belen Gutiérrez was sentenced to 3.5 years; a third suspect remains in custody pending trial

Sentence for an intimidation campaign

A court in Rosario on Wednesday sentenced 45-year-old Sergio Di Vanni to seven and a half years in prison for organizing acts of intimidation against footballer Ángel Di María and his family. According to the court, the goal was to prevent the player from returning from abroad to play for a rival club. The report comes from AFP.

What happened in 2024

In March 2024, Di María was playing for Portugal's Benfica, but was considering a return to his boyhood club, Rosario Central, which he ultimately joined in 2025. The threats included gunshots near the gated community where the footballer owns property, as well as a pig's head with a bullet hole left outside his sister's real estate agency, along with a note threatening his daughter. According to the prosecution, the perpetrators acted for four million pesos (about $2,600).

Other defendants and context of the case

Belen Gutiérrez, 25, whom the prosecution identified as one of the perpetrators, received three and a half years in prison in June under a plea agreement. A third suspect remains in custody pending trial. According to the prosecution, the intimidation campaign was linked to an internal power struggle among the ultras of Newell's Old Boys — Rosario Central's archrival in Rosario (which is also Lionel Messi's boyhood club). Di Vanni's sentence additionally covered separate offenses related to his involvement in the fan group.

Consequences for Di María

After the threats, Di María initially abandoned plans to return to Argentina for the sake of his family's safety, but later changed his mind. The 38-year-old player, a World Cup champion, has now spent two seasons at Rosario Central and helped the club win the Argentine championship at the end of 2025.