VIDEO+PHOTO Former great football player of the country, today he lives like a man of the street, while his children live in luxury! » “You cannot watch indifferently how such a man perishes”
Article by Oana Duşmănescu – Published Wednesday, December 10, 2025, 3:24 p.m. / Updated Wednesday, December 10, 2025, 3:24 p.m.
Apolinar Paniagua, 79, the former Paraguayan footballer who was part of his country's national team between 1975 and 1977, has been living as a homeless person for several years, while his sons live in luxury apartments.
Former Paraguayan soccer idol Apolinar Paniagua is currently eking out a living on the streets of his hometown of Yaguaron without a home, money or other essential means of living.
Apolinar Paniagua, once known for his outstanding technique and combativeness on the field, at some point disappeared entirely from the sporting and public scene.
Now Paniagua sleeps on city park benches and survives by collecting plastic bottles.
His life depends on the kindness of passers-by, who bring him food, clothes or blankets to wrap himself in and who still recognize him, although Paniagua is now almost 80 years old and the glory that football once brought him has long since faded.
“I knew immediately who he was. He was our pride, a real warrior on the football field. Now, the world has forgotten him. I brought him food and a blanket, I couldn't watch a man like that die. He told me that sometimes he collects plastic bottles to buy bread.” said a resident of Yaguaron, who helped Paniagua many times.
Apolinar Paniagua was abandoned by his own family. His children, who apparently still live in the city, have refused any contact with him for years, and the reasons for this estrangement are unclear.
Some say that Paniagua is to blame for the severing of family ties, others believe that it is about many deep misunderstandings, accumulated over the years.
Although living on the edge of subsistence, Apolinar Paniagua is still known among older fans who remember his sporting skills and the passion he showed on the pitch.
18 matchesApolinar Paniagua played in the equipment of the “national” Guarani
A few years ago, Paniagua had also been seen wandering the streets of Asuncion, the capital of Paraguay.
As a youth, Apolinar Paniagua played for teams in Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Ecuador, as well as in his native country. He was, moreover, champion of Colombia, together with Millionarios, in 1972.
