BUENOS AIRES: An Argentinean club drew the ire of the country’s football community after selecting an influencer with no professional experience in its starting XI for a top-flight match. Deportivo Riestra selected a streamer known as “Spreen” for their match against Primera Division leaders Velez Sarsfield on Monday, before substituting the 24-year-old off after 78 seconds. He had not touched the ball. “Spreen” - the pseudonym of Argentine influencer Ivan Buhajeruk - has some 15 million followers on his social media channels, including more than nine million on Twitch.

Riestra’s post on X announcing Spreen’s presence in their lineup racked up 3.4 million views, compared to the several thousand for a typical match. Football figures in Argentina have lambasted the club. Juan Sebastian Veron, the former Manchester United and Argentina midfielder and current president of Estudiantes de La Plata, condemned a “total lack of respect for football and footballers”. Velez striker Braian Romero also spoke of a “lack of respect towards football”, as well as a “bad message sent to society, to children, to those who try until the end” to break into the sport.

Riestra captain Milton Celiz said: “He’s a friend of the club, he has a contract... let him enjoy it, everyone would like to play in the first division.” But Celiz added that he “understands the criticism”, though the decision was “not our responsibility (as players), it’s a matter for the owners (of the club)”. “At no time was it our intention to disrespect Club Atletico de Velez Sarsfield or Argentinean football,” Riestra said in a statement, also pointing out that Velez had been informed of the initiative the week before the match.

“Our objective was (and is) to attract new audiences to football, to build bridges between different worlds and platforms, to continue strengthening the product (football) and our club, which is experiencing a historic moment in the First Division.” Riestra were promoted to the top flight last season after climbing five divisions in the last 10 years. The Argentinean Football Association (AFA) has asked its ethics committee to investigate “possible conduct that could damage Argentinean football’s reputation for integrity”. — AFP