Last week, Club Santos Laguna announced that a district judge ruled in favor of Alejandro Irarragorri Gutiérrez, the chairman of parent company Orlegi Sports, closing a legal battle that had kept him away from the public eye for most of the year.
The businessman was accused by Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office of defrauding tax authorities of 17 million pesos, a charge he repeatedly denied.
The case drew attention in January when Irarragorri missed a scheduled court appearance, leading to an arrest warrant that made headlines across Mexican sports media. Throughout the process, both Santos Laguna and Atlas F.C., also owned by Orlegi Sports, stood by him.
His legal team insisted the matter was the result of an accounting dispute rather than intentional wrongdoing. Despite the controversy, Irarragorri remained listed as chairman throughout the investigation.
Before the case began, Irarragorri had appointed his son, Alejandro Irarragorri Kalb, as president of Santos Laguna in October of last year, a role he continues to hold today.
Legal challenges for other Liga MX owners
Irarragorri’s legal victory comes at a time when several other Liga MX owners are facing problems of their own. In the United States, a judge recently ordered Mazatlán F.C. owner and media mogul Ricardo Salinas Pliego to post a $25 million bond to avoid jail time in a civil case brought by AT&T.
Salinas, whose business empire includes one of Mexico’s largest television networks and a major bank, is also fighting a tax case before Mexico’s Supreme Court. Mexican authorities are reportedly investigating whether he used a front company to conceal his ownership of Club Puebla.
In September, the United States Department of the Treasury sanctioned two companies linked to Jorge Alberto Hank Inzunza, owner of Club Tijuana Xolos, for alleged money laundering and ties to organized crime. Local reports list Hank Inzunza as a majority shareholder in both entities, though he has denied any involvement in illegal activity.
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