Wolfgang Niersbach, Secretary-General of the German Soccer Association at the Union Europeenne de Football Amateur (UEFA) headquarters in Nyon November 25, 2009.
Representatives of nine countries are meeting with the UEFA on Wednesday after German police said on Friday they had dismantled a gang with more than 200 suspected members operating in nine European leagues.European soccer’s governing body is investigating five clubs and seven games with “suspicious” results after uncovering links with an alleged match-fixing ring broken up by German police last week.
“UEFA wishes to stress that it has been cooperating fully with the German police and authorities on the case,” the organization’s general secretary Gianni Infantino said in an e- mailed statement.
One of the games listed by UEFA today was a qualification match for the elite Champions League in July. The remaining six fixtures were Europa League qualifiers played between July and August. Three referees and an individual “connected to UEFA” are also being probed.
German police announced the arrest of 17 people on Nov. 20 for suspected match-fixing involving as many as 200 games in nine European leagues. Officials from those countries met with UEFA at its Swiss headquarters today.
The five clubs involved in UEFA’s investigation are KF Tirana and KS Vllaznia of Albania, Latvia’s Dinaburg, Slovenian Cup holder NK IB Ljubljana and Hungary’s Budapest Honved FC. A further 40 matches played in UEFA competitions were already under investigation by the European body.
Infantino denied newspaper reports across Europe that implied UEFA officials were part of the alleged plots.
“There is no suspicion or investigation into any UEFA administration staff,” he said.
The German probe identified 200 suspects who may have paid bribes to influence games in countries including Germany, Turkey and Switzerland.
Wiretaps and Raids
Evidence from wiretaps and 50 raids conducted in Germany, Switzerland and the U.K. suggested the suspects formed a criminal group since at least the beginning of the year and may have defrauded betting companies out of as much as 10 million euros ($15 million), Friedhelm Althans of the Bochum police said last week. Almost 1 million euros was seized following the raids.
“UEFA will file criminal complaints, together with the relevant national associations, as soon as possible against clubs, officials and/or players in those countries concerned,” Infantino added.
source, image via daylife
