Billy Álvarez

Billy Álvarez
Born
Guillermo Héctor Álvarez Cuevas

(1945-09-08)8 September 1945
Jasso, Hidalgo, Mexico
Died30 May 2026(2026-05-30) (aged 80)
Toluca, State of Mexico, Mexico
EducationUniversidad La Salle México[1]
Parent(s)Guillermo Álvarez Macías
María del Carmen Cuevas Saldaña

Guillermo Héctor Álvarez Cuevas (8 September 1945 – 30 May 2026), better known as Billy Álvarez, was a Mexican football player and executive, convicted criminal, and for three years a wanted fugitive.[2][3] He was the general director of Cooperativa La Cruz Azul and president of the Mexican football club Cruz Azul from 1988 to 2020. Before his arrest in 2025, Álvarez Cuevas was wanted by Interpol in 195 countries for various crimes including multiple accounts of racketeering, money laundering, and extortion.[4][5][6]

Álvarez was the son of Guillermo Álvarez Macías, who was the founder and first general director of the Cruz Azul cooperative.[7]

Early life

Guillermo Héctor Álvarez Cuevas was born on 8 September 1945, to Guillermo Álvarez Macías and María del Carmen Cuevas Saldaña in the town of Jasso, Hidalgo. Álvarez Cuevas had three siblings: José Alfredo, María del Carmen, and María Gilda.[8]

Álvarez briefly played professional football at Cruz Azul Hidalgo as a forward in 1976.[2] He was elected to Congress for the 1994–1997 period, representing the third district of Hidalgo in the Chamber of Deputies for the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI).[9]

Career

In 1986, Álvarez became president of the football club Cruz Azul. He was later appointed chairman of Cooperativa La Cruz Azul S.C.L on 1 July 1988.[10]

Criminal Indictments

On 28 May 2020, the Unidad de Inteligencia Financiera froze the financial accounts of Álvarez, his brother José Alfredo Álvarez, and ex-vice president of Cruz Azul Víctor Manuel Garcés, citing money laundering and financial ties to shell companies worth over 300 million Mexican pesos (approx. US$15 million).[11] Their investigation suggested between 2013 and 2020, 1.2 billion pesos (US$60.6 million) were transferred from the Cruz Azul Cooperative into personal offshore bank accounts, namely in the United States and Spain.[12]

On 26 July 2020, Attorney General Alejandro Gertz Manero issued an arrest warrant for Álvarez and Garcés for ties with criminal organizations. Arrest warrants were also issued for directors of the Cruz Azul Cooperative Miguel Eduardo Borrell, Mario Sánchez Álvarez, and Ángel Martín Junquera.[13]

Cruz Azul faced disaffiliation from the Mexican Football Federation as a result of Álvarez's legal issues. He resigned as the general manager of the co-operative and subsequently stepped down as president of the football club on 1 August 2020, after 32 years as acting president.[14] Jamie Ordiales was then appointed the co-operative's general manager and the club's president.[15]

After over four years as a fugitive from justice, Álvarez was arrested in Mexico City on 16 January 2025 and taken to the Penal del Altiplano federal maximum security prison.[16]

Personal life and death

Álvarez Cuevas's daughter, Mónica Álvarez Álvarez, died of brain cancer on 16 December 2010, at the age of 24.[17][18] Álvarez died on 30 May 2026, at the age of 80.[19]

References

  1. ↑ "Ordenan capturar a Guillermo Álvarez Cuevas por presunto lavado de dinero". Cobertura 360. 30 July 2020.
  2. 1 2 Luna Cruz, Édgar (25 May 2013). "Álvarez, el apellido que se pinta de cruz azul". El Universal. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
  3. ↑ https://www.latintimes.com/fugitive-former-director-mexican-soccer-team-accused-money-laundering-finally-arrested-after-3-572560
  4. ↑ https://www.latintimes.com/fugitive-former-director-mexican-soccer-team-accused-money-laundering-finally-arrested-after-3-572560
  5. ↑ "Guillermo Héctor Álvarez Cuevas Es Buscado Por 195 Países; La Interpol Emitió Ficha Roja Contra El Ex Presidente De La Cooperativa De Cruz Azul". 20 August 2020.
  6. ↑ Mancera, Diego (21 August 2020). "Interpol busca a 'Billy' Álvarez, el rey del cemento mexicano". EL PAÍS.
  7. ↑ "Guillermo Álvarez Macías - PDF Descargar libre". docplayer.es.
  8. ↑ Huerta, Héctor (11 June 2020). "El segundo deslinde de Alfredo". ESPN Deportes. ESPN. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
  9. ↑ Gasca Bobadilla, Mauricio (30 May 2020). "¿Quién es 'Billy' Álvarez, cuál es su historia con Cruz Azul y por qué la afición está harta de él?". 90 Minutos. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
  10. ↑ "Se acumulan las acusaciones contra Billy Álvarez". 5 June 2020.
  11. ↑ López Ponce, Jannet (10 June 2020). "No hay persecución para Billy Álvarez, pero debe comprobar contratos de 300 mdp: UIF". Milenio. Milenio. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
  12. ↑ "Mexico's Cruz Azul soccer team top directors investigated for money laundering". El Universal. 29 May 2020. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
  13. ↑ Flores, Omar; Lecanda, León (29 July 2020). "Giran orden de aprehensión contra Billy Álvarez". ESPN. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
  14. ↑ Flores, Omar; Lecanda, León (1 August 2020). "Billy Álvarez renuncia a la Cooperativa La Cruz Azul". ESPN Deportes. ESPN. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
  15. ↑ García, Leonardo (14 August 2020). "Cruz Azul: Consejo de la Cooperativa ratifica la permanencia de Jaime Ordiales". ESPN Deportes. Soyfutbol. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
  16. ↑ Araujo, Matias E. (16 January 2025). "Detienen a Billy Álvarez, ex directivo de Cruz Azul, en CDMX". Infobae. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  17. ↑ "Recuerdan a hija de Billy". ESPN Deportes. Notimex. 9 January 2011. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
  18. ↑ "Fallece hija del presidente del Cruz Azul". Proceso. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
  19. ↑ Murió ‘Billy’ Álvarez, ex presidente de la Cooperativa Cruz Azul (in Spanish)
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