England: six arrests for match-fixing in lower leagues

Six people were arrested in England by the NCA (National Crime Agency) as part of an investigation into an Asian syndicate of illegal betting in the English lower divisions, said the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph, on the 27/11/2013 .

Three footballers and Delroy Facey, a former Premier League player who is now a sports agent, were among those interviewed by the British National Crime Agency, who confirmed that the Premier League is not involved. A joint investigation between the NCA, the FA, and the Gambling Commission has been opened.

In a clandestine video produced by the Telegraph, a Singaporean suspect revealed how the operation works: fixing the outcome of a match by paying a corrupt team would cost 50,000 pounds (about €60,000), and £20,000 (€24,000) would be needed to pay a referee to fix a match. By deliberately receiving a yellow card at the beginning of a match, and therefore signaling to bettors that the match is rigged, players would receive a further €6,000.

"We have to face up to the reality that the infiltration of criminality into football for the purpose of…