CHILE · FOOTBALL
Key Facts
- The country Chile’s professional leagues are run by one body, the national professional football association (ANFP).
- The club San Marcos de Arica, founded in 1978 in the northern city of Arica, plays in the second division.
- What happened On Tuesday 27 October 2026 the ANFP’s disciplinary tribunal voted 6-1 to disaffiliate the club.
- The charge The ANFP says sworn financial statements the club filed did not match its audited accounts.
- Still open The tribunal’s reasoned sentence is still to come, and the club can then appeal.
- Power Index Chile ranks 3rd of 14 in The Rio Times Latin America Power Index, with 63.6 points (October 2026 edition).
The San Marcos de Arica expulsion removes a second-division Chilean football club from the national professional association. On Tuesday 27 October 2026 the association’s disciplinary tribunal voted 6-1 to disaffiliate the club, which is based in the northern city of Arica.
The case concerns club finances rather than results on the pitch, and it shows how South American leagues police their clubs’ money. Our news report on the ruling has the first facts, and our rules explainer covers the regulations.
In Plain English
The ANFP, short for Asociación Nacional de Fútbol Profesional, is the association of Chile’s professional clubs, and it runs its own courts. Its Tribunal de Disciplina, the disciplinary tribunal, has a First Chamber that rules on complaints and a Second Chamber that hears appeals.
Disaffiliation, called desafiliación in Spanish, means a club loses its membership in the association and with it its place in the league. Primera B is the second division, one step below the top flight.
What Is San Marcos de Arica?
San Marcos de Arica is a professional club from Arica, a port city in Chile’s far north. The ANFP lists its founding date as 14 February 1978 and its home ground as the Estadio Carlos Dittborn.
The ANFP credits the club with three Primera B titles and two titles in the Segunda División, the third tier. Its president is David Ramos and its coach is Iván Sandrock, according to the ANFP’s club page.
San Marcos de Arica Expulsion: What the Tribunal Decided
The tribunal’s First Chamber voted six to one to grant the main request and impose disaffiliation. The ANFP’s own board filed the complaint, with the clubs Rangers de Talca, Unión San Felipe and Santa Cruz as supporting parties.
One judge in the majority added that the sentence should apply article 87 of the 2026 Primera B rules, which counts matches as 3-0 losses. The single dissenting judge wanted the Council of Club Presidents, the clubs’ own assembly, to decide on disaffiliation.
The San Marcos de Arica expulsion verdict gives no reasons. The tribunal says the reasoned sentence will be notified soon, and the appeal period starts then.
Why the League Went After the Club
The ANFP alleges that the club’s sworn quarterly statements to the association did not match its audited accounts. The unit that checks them, the Unidad de Control Financiero, monitors club finances and files complaints of this kind.
The San Marcos de Arica expulsion verdict does not say which allegations the tribunal found proven. Those reasons will come with the written sentence.
This was not the first complaint the ANFP filed against the club. On 22 October the Second Chamber rejected an appeal in that case by the three supporting clubs, because the ANFP had not appealed.
What It Could Mean for the League Table
The San Marcos de Arica expulsion could matter to the table through article 87, which one judge cited. It counts every match of a sanctioned club as lost 3-0, unless the opponent won by more.
The verdict itself does not state that any result changes. Whether article 87 applies to a disaffiliated club is the open question, and the written sentence will settle it.
How the Club Can Respond
Under the tribunal’s procedure code, the appeal period starts when the reasoned sentence is notified. The tribunal’s secretary has said the club then has five days to appeal to the Second Chamber.
Our companion piece on what happens next after the San Marcos de Arica expulsion walks through that appeal route. It also sets out the scenarios for the table.
The Case Against Deportes Puerto Montt
On the same day the First Chamber rejected a complaint against Deportes Puerto Montt by four clubs. Curicó Unido, Rangers de Talca, Santa Cruz and Unión San Felipe lacked standing to bring it, the tribunal found by six votes to one.
Like the San Marcos de Arica ruling, it is a verdict without reasons so far. The tribunal says its reasoned sentence will follow.
What It Means for US Readers
The San Marcos de Arica expulsion has no direct legal or market link to the United States. It matters to American fans who follow South American football and to anyone watching how Latin American leagues police club finances.
The tribunal treats even small payment failures as sanctionable. In September it docked third-tier club Deportes Rengo six points for paying pension contributions four days late, a sentence reviewed on appeal.
What Is Not Known
The tribunal has not published its reasons for the San Marcos de Arica expulsion, so it is open which allegations it found proven. It is also open whether the 3-0 rule changes any result.
It is not known whether the club will appeal, or how the Second Chamber would rule if it does. Nor is it known whether the dispute will move to an ordinary court.
More: Chile news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is San Marcos de Arica?
A professional football club from the northern Chilean city of Arica, founded on 14 February 1978. It plays at the Estadio Carlos Dittborn and competes in Primera B, the second division.
Why was San Marcos de Arica expelled?
The ANFP’s complaint alleges that sworn financial statements did not match audited accounts. The tribunal’s First Chamber upheld its main request by six votes to one on 27 October 2026, without giving reasons yet.
Does the expulsion change the Primera B table?
The verdict itself orders no change to results. One judge says article 87 should apply, which would count every match as a 3-0 loss, so the written sentence will decide.
Can San Marcos de Arica appeal?
Yes, to the tribunal’s Second Chamber. The tribunal’s secretary says the club has five days once the reasoned sentence is notified.
Did Puerto Montt face the same penalty?
No, the case against Deportes Puerto Montt failed. On the same day the First Chamber rejected it by six votes to one, finding that the complaining clubs lacked standing.
Sources: ANFP, First Chamber verdict on San Marcos de Arica (27 October 2026), 27 October 2026; ANFP, First Chamber verdict on Deportes Puerto Montt (27 October 2026), 27 October 2026; ANFP, Second Chamber ruling Rol 21 of 2026 (22 October 2026), 22 October 2026; ANFP, Second Chamber ruling Rol 22 of 2026 on Deportes Rengo (26 October 2026), 26 October 2026; ANFP, club page for San Marcos de Arica, 28 October 2026.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief