Five out of seven current and former Slovak footballers charged with match fixing last week by Slovakia's National Crime Agency (NKA), confessed that they have done so. Although police have not yet offered too many details, they have confirmed that four of them, who are still active players of the DAC 1904 Dunajská Streda club, received bribes for rigging some of their games in Slovakia’s top league.
According to Police Head Tibor Gaspar, the bribes ranged from €2,000 to €60,000 with the whole scheme managed by a ringleader making online bets with Asian bookmakers. The profit per match could reach even €50,000. Active players were approached by a former player who was arranging the results of matches or the number of goals scored. The Slovaks were involved in orchestrating similar schemes in the Czech Republic, too, where an investigation was launched in parallel with the one in Slovakia. If proved guilty the current and former players involved may face up to eight years in prison.
