A-League: Football players charged in Australia over alleged cross-border betting schemes

Sydney
CNN
—

Three players from Australia’s top football league have been arrested and charged over alleged betting fraud. They are accused of deliberately receiving yellow cards and giving away penalties at the behest of a South American criminal.

According to New South Wales Police, a senior A-League player is alleged to have taken instructions from the mastermind and arranged the breaches with teammates in certain games last year. The police have not yet released the names of those arrested.

Junior players would receive 10,000 Australian dollars ($6,666) if they receive yellow cards and penalties in those games to influence the results, Assistant Police Commissioner Michael Fitzgerald said during a news conference on Friday.

He said the alleged crimes happened in November and December last year, adding that “these players abused the trust of their supporters”.

Three players, aged 27, 32 and 33, are expected to appear in court later this month and next to be charged with “conduct that distorts the betting outcome of an event.” Authorities are looking for a fourth player, who is currently outside the state, for questioning, they added.

Investigators did not provide any information about the players’ squad, but said they belonged to a club in Sydney’s southwest. Three of the league’s 12 teams are based in Sydney, but only Macarthur FC hails from the city’s southwest.

Macarthur said in a statement: “The club is shocked and aware of the arrest of three A-League players by New South Wales Police. This is the result of international law enforcement coordination in relation to betting corruption related to alleged manipulation of the yellow card in matches.”

It added that it could not comment “for obvious reasons and in light of the ongoing police investigation” but would work closely with authorities on the matter.

Detective Inspector Peter Faux said police had found no evidence that the senior player involved had been threatened. They also found no evidence that players from other teams may have been complicit, he said.

He said the bets were placed overseas, predominantly in South America, and there was no evidence the bets came from Australia.

The league said in a statement that it was aware of the arrests. “The work to protect the integrity of our game must be unwavering and we are working closely with all relevant authorities on this matter,” it said.