Corinthians: Armando Mendonça requests removal from vice-presidency

The vice-president of Corinthians, Armando Mendonça, announced his departure from the position in a statement released this Monday (8). The director is being investigated by the MPSP (Public Ministry of São Paulo) on suspicion of embezzlement of the club's sporting materials.

In the text, he denies the accusations. "No one who even has the slightest knowledge of my career can believe, in good faith, that I would put my life, my family, my profession, my reputation and my name at risk for club materials", says the note.

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"Corinthians is too big to be treated lightly. And my story is too serious to be reduced to an accusation that does not correspond to the truth."

Recently, a group of counselors and associates asked for Mendonça's removal due to the complaint. In his statement, Mendonça harshly criticizes President Osmar Stabile, and criticized the leak of clandestinely recorded conversations, classifying the act as a "moral lynching" promoted by his opponents.

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"Corinthians cannot be used as a springboard for personal interests, external projects, power struggles or narratives that reduce its institutional greatness", he said.

Armando points out that his removal is not an acknowledgment of guilt, but rather a way of proving that "there is nothing to fear".

Complaint in the MP
CNN Brasil had access to the complaint presented last Wednesday (3) by prosecutor Cássio Roberto Conserino, who alleges the existence of aggravated and continued misappropriation, theft qualified by abuse of trust and coercion during the process.

According to the prosecutor, the investigation process had access to information that proves the crimes.

"Interviews were carried out with storekeepers from the Parque São Jorge warehouse and the Training Center. Concrete data on the appropriations of sports materials were externalized. Notes on requests, approvals, releases, irregularities in the flow of movement of materials were also subject to analysis", says an excerpt from the document.

The investigative process began after an audit carried out by Corinthians' technology director, who observed irregularities in the control of materials from Nike, the team's sports sponsor. The internal investigation was handed over to the current president of Corinthians, Osmar Stabile.

Read the statement in full:
"TO THE CORINTHIANA FANS, THE MEMBERS, THE ADVISORS AND EVERYONE WHO RESPECTS THE HISTORY OF SPORT CLUB CORINTHIANS PAULISTA

I speak out of respect for my history, my family, the advisors, the associates, the club's collaborators and, above all, the Corinthian fans. I do this with serenity, but also with the necessary firmness of someone who cannot allow their honor to be damaged by incomplete narratives, hasty and ill-intentioned accusations and interpretations that do not correspond to the truth.

I have been a lawyer for over twenty years. But, first and foremost, I am a son, brother, father, Corinthians fan and I have a history built long before any position. A story that I would never put at risk for any undue advantage.

I am very concerned to see that an accusation of this gravity, based on a work that, although technically useless, does not state that there was any misappropriation of materials by me, distributed at the end of work on a Wednesday, on the eve of a long holiday, had a concrete effect: my reputation was exposed for days to public interpretation, my family suffered all these days, while the defense, due to the very functioning of Justice, could only act properly after the regular distribution and processing of the case.

This is serious. Not just for the personal harm, but for the method. When an accusation is circulated before the trial, a person's reputation is exposed even before they can fully exercise their defense.

Reputation is not vanity. It is moral heritage.

It is what is built throughout a lifetime and must be defended with serenity, firmness and truth.

For this reason, I consider it my duty to clarify the facts, reaffirm my peace of mind and make it clear that I have never committed any illegal act against Sport Club Corinthians Paulista.

For this reason, I can say with absolute clarity: I have never diverted any material from Sport Club Corinthians Paulista.

The narrative that I appropriated 131 club materials is not true. The prosecution didn't even take care to see that of these 131 materials, 62 items didn't even leave Corinthians; 6 items were destined for President Osmar's trusted security guard, Fernando; 2 suitcases were destined for Leonardo Pantaleão. There are misconceptions that have already been explained and will continue to be clarified. The internal document produced within Corinthians does not state that I have committed diversion, appropriation or any conduct of that nature. The police investigation also did not conclude that there was any misappropriation of materials on my part.

Unfortunately, the institution, through its president, lacked firmness in clarifying this point to the fans, partners and advisors. There was a lack of will, from those who could do it, to put an end to a false, unfair and destructive narrative once and for all. An accusation like this deserves a position from the club to the entire nation and not just among members, friends and some fans.

No one who even has the slightest knowledge of my career can believe, in good faith, that I would put my life, my family, my profession, my reputation and my name at risk for club materials. Corinthians is too big to be treated lightly. And my story is too serious to be reduced to an accusation that is not true.

It is also necessary to say, with serenity and firmness, that I cannot be attributed with supposed "reckless management" over an area that was not under my direct responsibility and that was not part of my institutional responsibilities. The vice-presidency I hold should not be confused with operational warehouse management, stock control, distribution or write-off of sporting goods.

Responsibility is not assumed due to approximation, narrative convenience or the need to find a name. Liability requires fact, attribution, competence, conduct and proof.

I have always defended a professional, serious, independent and technically responsible investigation. I asked Corinthians to hire a specialized company to carry out this work. I also asked for an accounting audit. My requests were not answered by the president, who, in law and in fact, is responsible for the SCCP. Because of this, I asked on my own, through a renowned and specialized company, to analyze the work that the president asked those who did not have technical qualifications to do. The conclusion is disastrous. Enough of amateurism. Enough of treating Corinthians with so much disrespect.

I also repudiate the selective disclosure of excerpts from supposed private conversations, recorded clandestinely, which took place many months ago, in September 2025, and only now made public, without knowing their completeness, their context, their chain of custody and their technical validation. Private conversations, when recorded without knowledge of those involved, fragmented and presented in convenient sections, can serve less the truth and more the destruction of reputations.

If someone, more than eight months ago, secretly recorded a private conversation, saved this material, selected excerpts and only now brought it public, this method, in itself, reveals a lot about its real intention. Those who seek the truth seek to clarify the facts at the appropriate time. Anyone who records, saves, cuts and discloses only when it becomes politically convenient does not contribute to Justice. Contributes to moral lynching.

I don't fear the truth. I never feared. What worries me is that this episode is no longer just about me.

It came to represent a greater reflection: if honest people, qualified professionals, businesspeople, advisors and associates who wish to help Corinthians start to believe that any political divergence could result in campaigns of attrition, hasty accusations and public trials even before the production of evidence, who will continue to be willing to serve the club? The Romeos, Leonardos, Marcelos of life?

Fighting the good fight is difficult when some choose to fight in the mud. I do not subject myself to this type of dispute. I will not sink to the level of those who prefer insinuation to proof, cut to context, mud to fair debate.

In difficult times, I made difficult choices. By bringing to light the seriousness of the facts surrounding the Vai de Bet case, I know I made enemies. When I became aware of those facts, my conscience did not allow me any other path. I broke off immediately.

Each person knows the time of their decisions and the weight of their silences. It's not my place to judge anyone's conscience. But it is important to remember that not everyone took a stand at the same time. There were those who took their time, there were those who remained close and there were even those who accepted roles after serious facts were already known. Today, some talk about morality as if they had always been in the same place from the first moment.

I say this without arrogance or pretense of superiority. I just record one fact: my position was taken when it needed to be taken, not when it became convenient to take it. And I know that today I pay a dear price for that.

Politics is part of life in society and associative clubs. The problem is not with the policy itself, but with the way it is practiced. Good politics builds, brings together, dialogues and serves. Bad politics destroys, generalizes, accuses and tries to win through the moral degradation of others.

Corinthians cannot be used as a springboard for personal interests, external projects, power struggles or narratives that reduce its institutional greatness.

I never believed in individual saviors. Neither inside nor outside the club. Corinthians will not be saved by one person, one group or one narrative. The outcome for Corinthians will always be collective: directors, advisors, associates, professionals and fans working with responsibility, transparency and respect.

My fight for what I consider right will continue. I will not accept that this type of game, whose objective is to alienate people who can help Corinthians, prevails. Anyone who has a reputation to preserve has much more to lose than to gain by exposing themselves. But there are times when silence can be confused with conformity, and serenity needs to be accompanied by clarity.

I am absolutely convinced that it will be demonstrated once again that I never committed any offense against Sport Club Corinthians Paulista.

And I have, above all, the clear conscience of someone who can look at their family, their history, the advisors and the Corinthian fans and say: I would never put my name, my life and my honor at stake for any undue advantage, much less for the materials of a club that I have always tried to respect.

For consistency, out of respect for Corinthians, the Corinthians, my friends on the Board, the club's employees and my family, I inform you that I have requested my leave from the position of 2nd vice-president of Sport Club Corinthians Paulista before the internal bodies.

Not by acknowledging any guilt. Because there is no guilt to acknowledge. Not out of fear. Because I have nothing to fear. But because I believe that, at certain times, serving Corinthians means putting the club above oneself.

I have no attachment to the position. I am attached to my principles and ideals.

I owe respect to Corinthians. I owe my family protection. I owe fidelity to my conscience. And it is with her absolutely peace of mind that I move forward.

Life requires courage. To serve Corinthians, you need to have courage. And I will not be on the side of anyone who is afraid of arapongas.

To lead this nation, there is a need for firmness and conviction.

São Paulo, June 8, 2026.

Armando Mendonça"

Source: CNN