The restructuring efforts initiated by Rafael Louzán, the new president of the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), have now reached the National Futsal Committee. According to exclusive reports, Antonio García Plata and Javier Lorente have been dismissed from their positions.
García Plata served as an advisor to José Miguel Monje, the head of the National Futsal Committee. While Lorente unofficially functioned as the sports director for the national team. Their appointments in June 2022 followed the resignation of Pablo Burillo. Who had refused to accept former president Luis Rubiales’ demands regarding leadership changes in the committee.
García Plata was instrumental in Rubiales’ 2019 decision to have the RFEF take over the organization of first and second division competitions from the National Futsal League (LNFS). Which had managed these competitions since 1989. After ending his 24-year tenure as president of the Football Players Association in June 2022, he was appointed as Monje’s deputy in August.
In October 2024, the committee announced that Luis Amado, a former international goalkeeper who had been serving as an RFEF ambassador since 2019, would replace Lorente. The announcement described this change as part of a broader restructuring of the futsal department. Lorente, who joined the RFEF in 2022 from Movistar Inter, had faced significant criticism from clubs during his two-year tenure.
dismissals
These dismissals reflect the “maximum concern” about futsal under the RFEF’s new leadership. The changes follow the January departure of Pedro Galán and the February appointment of Álvaro Cid Bragado as the new president of the Football Referees Commission. While Louzán maintains confidence in Monje, he has demanded comprehensive departmental restructuring. Due to clubs’ diminishing trust and concerns raised by regional federation leaders about the committee’s internal operations.
The National Futsal Committee has struggled with numerous issues, including the lack of a strategic plan, errors in tournament draws, poor event organization, and declining visibility. Recently, the Spanish Cup in Murcia had to be rescheduled due to a scheduling conflict with a basketball game, highlighting planning deficiencies. Spain’s disappointing performance at the Uzbekistan World Cup has further intensified scrutiny.
Clubs have expressed growing dissatisfaction with the committee’s management, citing concerns about financial oversight, imposed rules allegedly endorsed by FIFA but opposed by coaches, scheduling conflicts with national team priorities, and the elimination of holiday rest periods for players. Nicolás Sabariego, sports director of Jaén Paraíso Interior, summarized this sentiment by stating that “we are much worse with the RFEF than with the LNFS.”
