Former eccentric goalkeeper Chilavert completely fails Paraguay’s presidential elections | sport

Success on the football field does not guarantee success at the polls. In Paraguay’s presidential election on Sunday, José Luis Chilavert won just 24,284 of the more than three million votes cast. Converted, that meant 0.80% of the vote, while right-wing candidate Santiago Peña got over 42% of the vote.

The 44-year-old economist and former finance minister thus becomes the new president of Paraguay. Winner Peña’s Colorado Party has ruled the South American country almost continuously since 1947. Peña will be inaugurated on August 15.

Chilavert (57) played football in Europe for Spanish club Real Zaragoza and Strasbourg in France. The Paraguayan goalkeeper celebrated his greatest successes with Argentinian club Vélez Sársfield, with whom he won the Copa Libertadores, the most important award for South American clubs. Chilavert was named the world’s best goalkeeper three times in the 1990s.

The 74-time international has not only become famous for his goalkeeping skills, but also for his goalscoring. Chilavert scored 67 goals from penalty kicks and free kicks, including eight for the national team. The goalkeeper was the captain of the Paraguayan national team during the 1998 and 2002 World Cups.

Paraguay – the South American country completely landlocked between Argentina, Brazil and Bolivia – has a fairly stable economy compared to the rest of the region. Over the past two decades, for example, the country has grown on average around 4% per year. Inflation has also remained relatively low. The country is plagued by massive corruption. The United States recently announced sanctions against Peña’s political mentor for corruption: former Paraguayan president and Colorado party leader Horacio Cartes.

Also striking: Paraguay is the only country in South America that diplomatically recognizes Taiwan. Worldwide, there are only a handful of countries that do this. The winner of the election – Peña – will continue his country’s policy, but despite this, he also wants to focus on improving economic relations with China, which still considers Taiwan a renegade province.