Red cards being dished out left, right and centre by FIFA in the last couple of weeks, at anyone implicated in match-fixing in several parts of the world. Is this a serious crackdown by the game's ruling body or making a lot of noise about the easy pickings - the low-paid players/low-level clubs where it's nice to hear something is being done but nobody outside the local supporters are particularly bothered about it?
A collection of articles from recent days - it's everywhere at the moment:
Singapore widens soccer-fix probe.
Singaporean authorities still won't arrest Dan Tan, but did help get one of his accomplices arrested in Milan last week.
FIFA bans 74 for match-fixing in Italy, S.Korea
No names mentioned, can only assume they weren't deemed to be newsworthy by anyone outside those leagues.
National Super Cup suspected of match fixing
"...an anonymous message was sent to some Vietnamese Professional Football officials just before the game saying that Saigon Xuan Thanh Cement FC will be defeated, and even with more than three goals. The results were exactly as this message: Saigon Xuan Thanh Cement lost in a game that the team played very poorly."
Contrite Hungarian admits to match-fixing ahead of trial
"After the police arrested me, I spent an awful night in a jail where I thought over the whole story. I can only be angry with myself, only then I realised what I had done," he said.
"I have no fear but I am not calm either. Not a day passes without thinking of the others who are still in jail. I have regrets, I lost almost all of my friends, but I told the truth to the investigators."
FIFA extends China match-fixing bans worldwide
Match-fixing bans on 58 Chinese soccer officials and players will be extended worldwide, the sport's governing body FIFA said.
The 58 were banned by the Chinese Football Association (CFA) on Feb. 18 following a three-year push to clean up rampant corruption in the sport in China.
''The sanctions by the Chinese Football Association's disciplinary committee involve players and officials, with 25 receiving a five-year ban from all football activities while the remaining 33 individuals were banned from all football activities for life,'' a FIFA statement said.
AFC probes Lebanon matchfixing report
The Asian Football Confederation are investigating a report of matchfixing in Lebanon, the regional body told Reuters on Wednesday, after the World Cup hopefuls handed out punishments to 22 players for rigging games.
As he waits for jail, Croatian soccer player deeply regrets involvement in match-fixing
The Croatian midfielder was the perfect target for fixers: He was nearing the end of his career, his financially unstable club hadn't paid him a regular salary for 14 months, and he owed money on back taxes and his pension.
Cizmek's story is typical of how the world's most popular sport is increasingly becoming a dirty game — sullied by criminal gangs like the one that bribed Cizmek, and by corrupt officials or others cashing in on the billion-dollar web of match-fixing.
Just a short story about match-fixing
If you've read the other articles, then this one won't shock you - a report of a bankrupt club being taken over by match-fixers and offering players big money to play their 'style' of football.
A collection of articles from recent days - it's everywhere at the moment:
Singapore widens soccer-fix probe.
Singaporean authorities still won't arrest Dan Tan, but did help get one of his accomplices arrested in Milan last week.
FIFA bans 74 for match-fixing in Italy, S.Korea
No names mentioned, can only assume they weren't deemed to be newsworthy by anyone outside those leagues.
National Super Cup suspected of match fixing
"...an anonymous message was sent to some Vietnamese Professional Football officials just before the game saying that Saigon Xuan Thanh Cement FC will be defeated, and even with more than three goals. The results were exactly as this message: Saigon Xuan Thanh Cement lost in a game that the team played very poorly."
Contrite Hungarian admits to match-fixing ahead of trial
"After the police arrested me, I spent an awful night in a jail where I thought over the whole story. I can only be angry with myself, only then I realised what I had done," he said.
"I have no fear but I am not calm either. Not a day passes without thinking of the others who are still in jail. I have regrets, I lost almost all of my friends, but I told the truth to the investigators."
FIFA extends China match-fixing bans worldwide
Match-fixing bans on 58 Chinese soccer officials and players will be extended worldwide, the sport's governing body FIFA said.
The 58 were banned by the Chinese Football Association (CFA) on Feb. 18 following a three-year push to clean up rampant corruption in the sport in China.
''The sanctions by the Chinese Football Association's disciplinary committee involve players and officials, with 25 receiving a five-year ban from all football activities while the remaining 33 individuals were banned from all football activities for life,'' a FIFA statement said.
AFC probes Lebanon matchfixing report
The Asian Football Confederation are investigating a report of matchfixing in Lebanon, the regional body told Reuters on Wednesday, after the World Cup hopefuls handed out punishments to 22 players for rigging games.
As he waits for jail, Croatian soccer player deeply regrets involvement in match-fixing
The Croatian midfielder was the perfect target for fixers: He was nearing the end of his career, his financially unstable club hadn't paid him a regular salary for 14 months, and he owed money on back taxes and his pension.
Cizmek's story is typical of how the world's most popular sport is increasingly becoming a dirty game — sullied by criminal gangs like the one that bribed Cizmek, and by corrupt officials or others cashing in on the billion-dollar web of match-fixing.
Just a short story about match-fixing
If you've read the other articles, then this one won't shock you - a report of a bankrupt club being taken over by match-fixers and offering players big money to play their 'style' of football.
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