An angry exchange of words involving Argentine soccer coach Ramon Diaz between two heavyweights of Egyptian soccer — Saudi Arabian sports boss Turki al-Sheikh and Mahmoud Al-Khatib, the head of the Al-Ahly soccer team — has opened a Pandora’s box of parliamentary inquiries and legal procedures about the finances of Egypt’s popular soccer team.

The crisis escalated sharply June 3 when Sheikh announced his intention to file a complaint with the Egyptian attorney general accusing Khatib and the Al-Ahly board of misusing his donations, some 260 million Egyptian pounds ($14.5 million), which had been earmarked for the club’s development.

The controversy, still lively on social media, began May 23 when Saudi soccer team Al-Ittihad of Jeddah signed Diaz as its head coach, although Diaz had initially been in talks with Al-Ahly. The deal raised Al-Ahly fans’ anger toward Sheikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Sports Authority and then-honorary president of Al-Ahly. In social media messages and statements, they accused the Saudi sports boss of putting the interests of a Saudi team before the interests of Al-Ahly and “swaying Diaz away from Al-Ahly to Ittihad Jeddah.”

Faced with criticism both from the fans and even some members of the board, Sheikh announced his resignation from the post of honorary president. However, his parting remarks inflamed the controversy even further. He launched a counterattack on the soccer team’s board and its chairman, Khatib, a former Al-Ahly player, accusing them of backpedaling on the deal with Diaz and stressing that he only recommended Diaz to Ittihad Jeddah after the Al-Ahly board’s reluctance. Sheikh also criticized Al-Ahly of mishandling its contractual dealings with players and head coaches, which led to the club “wasting” contributions of 260 million Egyptian pounds.