(RTTNews) - German prosecutors said Friday that the country's police have arrested seventeen people, including two foreigners, in connection with an investigation into alleged match-fixing in major European football leagues.
Investigators said that they had busted the "biggest fraud scandal to ever hit European football," and have arrested the gang leaders responsible for fixing the matches in some 50 raids conducted in Switzerland, Germany and Britain.
According to officials, those arrested in connection with the scandal included fifteen Germans and two Swiss nationals. The raids, which led to the seizure of about $1.4 million in cash and valuables, reportedly revealed that the group was involved in fixing some 200 matches in Europe, including at least three Champions League ties and 12 Europa League games.
The 200-member criminal group is believed to have bribed players, coaches, referees and other officials and is suspected of running an international gambling ring that took bets from clients in Europe and Asia.
Meanwhile, European football's governing body, the UEFA, confirmed that it has backed an investigation targeting an international criminal gang suspected of wide-ranging match-fixing since January. The UEFA said some 200 games in Europe were being investigated.
"UEFA has been actively involved in the investigation and has given assistance via detailed information through its Betting Fraud Detection System. This detection system monitors all UEFA competitions and European national league first and second division matches for suspicious betting patterns. The information on a number of matches was passed to the German authorities upon their request," it said in a statement.
Meanwhile, UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino said that the organization will be "demanding the harshest of sanctions before the competent courts for any individuals, clubs or officials who are implicated in this malpractice, be it under state or sports jurisdiction."
by RTT Staff Writer
For comments and feedback: contact editorial@rttnews.com