Fifa probe exposes probable match-fixing of pre-2010 World Cup friendlies
Confidential Fifa report details incidents four years ago in South Africa where referees helped rig matches for Singapore betting syndicate
A confidential Fifa report raises concerns about World Cup match-fixing vulnerabilities just 12 days before the global soccer showdown kicks off in Brazil, The New York Times reported.
The newspaper obtained a copy of the 44-page internal report over incidents from the 2010 World Cup in South Africa by the world governing body and other related documents raising issues of bettors influencing outcomes and referee honesty.
The Times interviewed officials, referees, gamblers and others in South Africa, England, Malaysia, Singapore and Finland.
Were the listed matches fixed? On the balance of probabilities, yes
It looked into issues that could compromise the event for Fifa, which is expected to receive US$4 billion in revenue for sponsor deals, television rights and ticket sales from this year's World Cup.
"Were the listed matches fixed? On the balance of probabilities, yes," the previously unpublicised Fifa report said.
A match-rigging betting syndicate whose referees fixed friendlies even made a death threat after a match official tried to stop the fix, the Times said.
In one cited example, Niger referee Ibrahim Chaibou brought a bag with thousands of dollars in US$100 bills into a bank and made suspect handball calls later that night in a friendly between South Africa and Guatemala in May 2010 at Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane, another referee said.
Chaibou, who denied fixing a match to the newspaper and who has since retired, was chosen for the match by a Singapore company - Football 4U International - that is a front for a match-rigging group, according to the Fifa report, the Times said.