Match Fixing on Wikileaks - Printable Version +- Deep Politics Forum (https://deeppoliticsforum.com/fora) +-- Forum: Deep Politics Forum (https://deeppoliticsforum.com/fora/forum-1.html) +--- Forum: Sports (https://deeppoliticsforum.com/fora/forum-37.html) +--- Thread: Match Fixing on Wikileaks (/thread-5323.html) |
Match Fixing on Wikileaks - Danny Jarman - 09-01-2011 SCANDALS -------- ¶4. © Given the ownership of the Bulgarian soccer clubs, allegations of illegal gambling, match fixing, money laundering, and tax evasion plague the league. A large scandal erupted in September 2009 during the run-up to the match between Levski and CSKA, the most important rivalry in Bulgarian soccer. Immediately prior to the match, four Levski players were put on a plane to Moscow as part of a last minute transfer to the Russian team, FC Rubin Kazan. Shortly after Levski's 2-0 loss to CSKA, it became clear that the transfer was a hoax and that the President of Levski, Todor Batkov, had been defrauded of the Euro 200,000 transfer fee. The local press reported that the odds for CSKA winning the game fell dramatically before the announcement of the transfer, possibly indicating large amounts of money bet against Levski. Theories on what really happened vary, but the most popular are that Batkov bet against his own team to pay back debts, or that the new owners of CSKA orchestrated the transfer. Despite preliminary investigations into the case, there have been no arrests. RUMORS OF MATCH FIXING ---------------------- ¶5. © Long-standing allegations of match fixing have probably done the most to damage Bulgarian soccer's reputation. According to the sports editor of the daily "Trud," Vladimir Pamukov, and sports journalist, Krum Savov, the most common match fixing schemes are bribing referees and paying off players on the opposing club to insure a team loses by a certain score. They argue that thanks to organized crime influences and economic disparity between the teams, match fixing has become an extremely common practice. This has caused many Bulgarians to view the outcomes of soccer matches like Americans view the predetermined outcomes of professional wrestling. Pamukov highlighted the fall in television ratings and crowds at soccer games as evidence of this disillusionment, claiming that prior to the transition there would be 10,000 people at games and now 500 to 2,000 show up. ¶6. © Journalists, critics and fans often cite illogical results and unexplainable play as the evidence of match fixing even though there have been few investigations and proven cases over the last twenty years. When there are arrests and evidence of corruption, cases often come to nothing or the accused are acquitted due to a lack of evidence. Ivan Lekov, a well-known former soccer referee and deputy head of the State Agency for Sports and Youth, was arrested in 2008 before TV cameras for allegedly orchestrating match fixing. Four former soccer referees broke their silence, claiming Lekov and the head of the Bulgarian Football Union's (BFU) referee committee applied pressure on them to fix matches. Following Lekov's arrest, the BFU dismissed the entire referee committee for the first time and passed a code of ethics for clubs. Despite these changes, match fixing has not dissipated and Lekov, often cited by the previous government as an example of its anti-corruption efforts, was acquitted due to a lack of evidence and witnesses refusing to testify. On December 14, 2009 the executive committee of the BFU, in what is becoming an annual tradition, again fired the entire referee commission due to match fixing rumors. It also suspended two referees for poor officiating in recent league games, leading to even more suspicions. The Union of European Football Association (UEFA), the governing body of European soccer, also is investigating Bulgarian referee Anton Genov for his alleged involvement in fixing an international match. According to the UEFA, there were obvious irregular betting patterns prior to the international friendly match on November 14, 2009 in which Genov awarded four penalty shots during Macedonia's 3-0 victory over Canada. http://wikileaks.ch/cable/2010/01/10SOFIA32.html Match Fixing on Wikileaks - David Guyatt - 09-01-2011 You'll remember the Italian Serie A and B match fixing scandal of just a few years ago too, I suspect Danny? I often wonder if a similar things visits the Premiership? Considering that the Referees in the Premiership are now professional, and according to who who read, earn up to £70,000 a year, I remain speechless at the flagrant decisions that are made on a weekly basis. And this is across the spectrum (not just the team I support). Match Fixing on Wikileaks - Danny Jarman - 08-02-2011 It wouldn't shock me David. I remember reading an article a while back about referee Mike Dean being involved with a website to do with arbitrage horse betting. There are many storys about Premier League footballers despite their wages being in serious debt to bookmakers because of gambling problems. So it wouldn't be crazy to think they could pay back these "debts" in other ways. |