Match-fixing: Champions League tie played in England 'was fixed'

A Champions League tie played in England is one of 680 matches across the world investigators say was fixed.

European police did not reveal the identity of the match they believe was corrupt in England.

But Europol did say that they had uncovered an organised crime syndicate based in Asia that was co-ordinating the operation.

Some 425 match officials, club officials, players and criminals are suspected of being involved.

At a news conference in The Hague, Netherlands, Europol claimed:

•The fixed Champions League tie in England took place in the "last three or four years";
•The identity of that match cannot be revealed due to "ongoing judicial proceedings";
•Other "corrupt" matches included World Cup and European Championship qualifiers and "several top football matches in European leagues";
•In Germany-based matches alone, criminals wagered £13.8m (16m euros) on rigged matches and made £6.9m in profits. Officials fear this is as the "tip of the iceberg";
•In total 380 suspicious matches were in Europe and a further 300 in Africa, Asia and south and central America.
Rob Wainwright, director of Europol - the European Union's law enforcement agency, said:"This is the work of a suspected organised crime syndicate based in Asia and operated with criminal networks around Europe.

"It is clear to us this is the biggest-ever investigation into suspected match-fixing in Europe. It has yielded major results which we think have uncovered a big problem for the integrity of football in Europe.

"We have uncovered an extensive criminal network."

Europol, which has been investigating for 18 months, said suspected matches included World Cup and European Championship qualifiers, two Champions League ties and "several top football matches in European leagues".

In addition to the £13.8m wagered on Germany-based matches, payments of £1.73m are thought to have been paid to those involved.

Financial details were not given from the other countries said to be involved, except that the biggest payment to an individual was in Austria for a total of £121,000.

Europol believes a crime syndicate based in Singapore was liaising with criminal networks throughout Europe, adding that match-fixing has taken place in 15 countries and 50 people have so far been arrested.

In total, 30 countries and close to 700 matches worldwide were examined.

Many of the allegations involved matches in lower divisions around Europe.

German police described a global network involving couriers ferrying bribes of up to £86,000 per match around the world, paying off players and referees.

Most cases have been discovered in Germany where 14 people have been jailed for a total of 39 years.

Criminal convictions have also been secured in Finland, Hungary, Slovenia and Austria.

Asked specifically about the allegations surrounding the Champions League tie held in England, Wainwright declined to identify the match because of "ongoing judicial proceedings".

However he did say it happened in the last three to four years, adding: "The focus has been on other countries, not the United Kingdom. However we were surprised by the scale generally of the criminal enterprise and just how widespread it was.

"It would be naive and complacent of those in the UK to think such a criminal conspiracy does not involve the English game and all the football in Europe."

A Uefa spokesman said they would co-operate with the investigation. He said: "We will be liaising with Europol in relation to any reports of match fixing in European competition."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/21319807

And it stretches into realms way beyond pro [or amateur] sports ~ I am now cynical enough to believe that where there is money involved, there is corruption ~

Sooz

Pro sports have been "corporatised".
And considering how corrupt the corporate world is...
Rather explains it, eh?

Ravens v 49ers was a great Super Bowl.

Loads wrong with the world of pro sports. I still love them.

Yeah, nothing like rigged games.

Meh, soccer.

Let's see, doping, lying, cheating, thuggery... nice picture of pro sports, eh?

Watch it, young lady!

While my husband and son still watch pro sports, I don't except for PBA. Hubby and I for well over 30 years bowled in leagues three times a week.

I don't see that as any different from my view of Wall Street.

People romanticize things that shouldn't be romanticized. Pro sports is the functional equivalent of picking a horse and rooting for him to win. You either care or you don't. We don't have control. Something fun to root for or not.

I don't see that as any different from my view of Wall Street.
Exactly.
See post #3.

I loved the Super Bowl and my fav commercial was of course the Clydesdale colt....

Please don't tell me the Puppy Bowl was fixed - it'll break my heart.

I've never been much of a US pro football fan. I used to watch baseball with my Dad who loved it and played semi-pro back in the day until he shattered his ankle. In those days (the 30's), that was the death-knell for sports playing. To me baseball is a sport best watched live.

I prefer college football, and now I do enjoy watching the CFL and NFL. I will watch some soccer with hubby, especially the World Cup. I love watching the Olympic teams. I am constantly amazed at their stamina with all the running they do.

Lacrosse is exciting, but violent. Rugby the same. Australian rules football is a hoot to watch! I don't understand it, but it's exciting.

Clydesdale colt was BY FAR the best ad.

The South Jersey boy was the MVP so I was as happy as I could be with a Super Bowl without the Eagles.

I like the Phillies almost as much as I like the Eagles but baseball is a boring, boring game. It can be fun at the park, but it's hard to care at all when your team isn't in the mix. All the current superstars of baseball are juiced.

LOL, laff. If it's on reality TV, it's scripted.

I am a die hard 49er's fan! Have been wearing my gear all throughout the year and every day since we played in the NFC Championship. The Superbowl started out as a failure unless you were a Ravens fan. It turned into a game for the ages. Deep hole dug by the Niners in the first half. Second half starts out with more of the same running the score up to 28-6. And then the great comeback by the Niners to get within 5 points with a little over 2 minutes to go and 1 down on the 7 yard line. The game ended on a controversial call which just gives us, fans of the game that is, something to talk about until next year. Already the 49er's are being picked to repeat as NFC Champs and make it back to the Bowl. Football is truly America's game. Not baseball or basketball or even NASCAR...lol

Pro ball is not fixed. Sure there are guys that are cheating by juicing and such, but it ain't fixed

not a fan of pro sports. at all. but i watched the game for the last 25 mins.

Must explain the constant drama, year after year, that keeps you coming back for more.

Yup. This is the first time in 19 years the Niners made it to the bowl. I am already looking forward to next year. Out of all the Pro sports, the NFL is my fave.

"I am now cynical enough to believe that where there is money involved, there is corruption"

Money IS corruption.

Nope, no doping, lying, cheating, thuggery, etc. in the NFL.
And can you guarantee 100% that the refs are on the up and up and not managing the game?

Who said there wasn't any doping. lying, cheating, thuggery, etc...in the nfl? Shirley, not me. I mean surely not me.

I can no more guarantee that then you will become a millionaire in the morning. There have been refs in other sports caught cheating so I see no reason why there aren't those in the nfl that are doing the same. However, with a 'crew' and with instant replay, hard for an nfl ref to cheat.

Itès easy for refs to cheat and get away with it.
It doesn't take much to change a game around.

I beg to differ. A ref can only miss so many calls before it is more than obvious something's up. On that level and with the technology and instant replay, a ref could be out of a job in a hot minute if he was consistently making wrong calls. Just as if a QB was throwing interceptions when he shouldn't be.

But you are right about it not taking much to change a game around. That was proved this past Superbowl. Even though everyone that knows football says Crabtree was held on the 49ers last attempt, the facts are a flag has only been thrown 2 times, within the final 2 minutes of a game, in the last 55 playoff games for defensive holding or pass interference. In other words, don't count on a flag in the last 2 minutes of a game.

For what it's worth:

http://thefixisin.net/nfl.html