Institutional crisis and total division at Boca Juniors after a season of failures before the World Cup: "There are those who love Riquelme and those who don't."

" Boca has always been divided , but now the rift has deepened even more because there are no sporting results. There are those who love Riquelme and those who don't , because of politics and the club's opposition." Tato Aguilera , a journalist for TyC Sports , sums up the situation of one of the biggest clubs in Argentina, the Americas, and the world in a conversation with this newspaper. Boca Juniors debuts today against Benfica in the Club World Cup and does so with a deep institutional crisis but with thousands of fans in the streets of Miami. Because the 'bostero' is like that: "They are crazy about their club."

Boca Juniors' season is dramatic, as are their final years. The Buenos Aires side haven't won the Libertadores since 2007 , losing in the final in 2012, 2018 and 2023, and haven't won a national competition since winning the league in 2022. Everything that could go wrong has gone wrong, and the last six months have seen a steady decline over the precipice of the Bombonera, with Juan Román Riquelme , the club's greatest idol in history and its president, increasingly questioned by fans who will love him forever but want to win.

Boca fell in the preliminary phase of the Libertadores against Alianza de Lima and lost in the quarterfinals of the Apertura tournament against Independiente to confirm the sporting and institutional crisis that ended with the dismissal of Fernando Gago , who was on the bench: "Let them all go," sang the Bombonera stands that day.

And now, the Club World Cup appears to be a salve for all their problems, but also brings the pressure of doing something interesting to make up for their recent results. Leading the team is Miguel Ángel Russo , the coach who led them to the Americas title in 2007.

"Boca arrives renewed with the signing of Russo, but in football terms, it's a mystery," explains Gastón Garnica of Direct TV. " To be left out of the Libertadores in this way is unthinkable for a club like Boca; it's a very significant sporting failure," adds Aguilera.

" Riquelme is the club's biggest idol and he has had his critics , but the people are with him," says Garnica, although Aguilera isn't so sure: "The opposition is generating a huge movement on social media that is also reaching out to the public. At La Bombonera, some people chanted ' let the Commission go ,' targeting Riquelme."

Of course, on the streets of Miami, Boca fans are better than anyone. " They have an unconditional love for the club , that's what Boca fans are like. They're crazy about the club," says Aguilera.

And all this while River Plate is smiling with appearances like that of Mastantuono , recently signed by Real Madrid for 63 million, who will surely help rebuild the team after his departure following the Club World Cup. Alongside him are names like Julián Álvarez and Enzo Fernández , young players who have left River Plate and have left a lot of money to continue competing. Boca Juniors, meanwhile, is looking for the same, although the release clauses it has received for its young players are cheaper.