Soccer-Argentine players warn club debts are building up again

Argentine players have warned that first division clubs are running up more debts and that the new season cannot get under way next month if the situation is not brought under control.

The comments from the Argentina Players' Association (FAA) came only four months after the players went on strike over unpaid wages, forcing a round of championship matches to be postponed.

The newly-created Argentine Superliga, featuring 28 teams, is due to kick off on Aug. 20.

"Many clubs are continuing the old practice of hiring (players) irresponsibly without first paying what they owe and nobody is putting the brakes on this conduct," the FAA said in a statement.

"It is striking that just four months after that (strike), the clubs have accumulated substantial debts," said the FAA, adding that organisers of the league had not established any control mechanism over the clubs.

"Our decision to warn that the season will not start under these conditions follows our reasoning that, in addition to paying wages on time, it is important to establish measures of audit and compliance."

The Superliga, which organises the league independently of the Argentine FA, could not immediately be reached for comment.

(This article has not been edited by DNA's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)