Diego Souza has been suspended for 360 days over allegations that he used a forged document to obtain a coaching license. The first disciplinary commission of the Santa Catarina Sports Justice Tribunal (TJD-SC) issued the ruling unanimously on Tuesday and also imposed a R$20,000 fine.
Souza, a former player who was announced as Joinville’s coach in August, told the hearing that he had been the victim of a scam. He said he obtained the license through former Argentine player Alejandro Mancuso and believed the documentation was genuine. Souza cried during the hearing.
The case is linked to an investigation into the sale of fake coaching licenses involving Mancuso. According to the TJD-SC complaint, Argentina’s Football Coaches Association (ATFA) told Brazil’s football confederation, the CBF, that Souza had no academic record for the course listed on his diploma, which was purportedly issued in December 2023. ATFA also reported an inconsistency between the document’s date and the signature of its secretary-general. CONMEBOL said it found no coaching-license record in Souza’s name.
The TJD-SC prosecutor’s office argues that these findings point to possible document forgery. It also says Souza personally presented the paperwork to Joinville, which used it to seek his professional registration. The CBF has since canceled that registration.
Joinville said Souza will remain involved in the club’s day-to-day activities, while assistant coach Raphael Bahia will lead the team as the case proceeds. The TJD-SC ruling can be appealed to the tribunal’s full bench and could later be taken to Brazil’s Superior Sports Justice Tribunal (STJD).
Sources: Folha Esporte.