21 Sep 2011

Football match-fixers are buying clubs

6:54 am on 21 September 2011

Match-fixing in football has reached the point where criminal gangs are buying clubs and organising referee training camps as part of their infiltration of the game.

That warning comes from FIFA's security chief Chris Eaton who says, as part of its response, FIFA wants to provide witness protection for players who come forward when they're approached by match-fixers, and they would consider rehabilitation for those corrupted at a young age.

Eaton, who worked at Interpol for more than 12 years before joining FIFA, says there's also a significant trend in the trafficking of players, planting them in other leagues with a so-called mentor.