Former Korea keeper admits to fixing
Source: Agencies |
June 28, 2011, Tuesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
A FORMER South Korean national team goalkeeper has confessed to his involvement in fixing soccer matches in the growing K-League corruption scandal.
A senior K-League official said that the Jeonbuk Motors keeper has admitted to fixing games last season when playing for rival team Chunnam Dragons.
"The goalkeeper first informed his Jeonbuk head coach Choi Kang-hee last Friday night," K-League secretary Ahn Gi-heon told Yonhap news agency. "After speaking with Lee Chul-geun, general manager of Jeonbuk, we decided to hand the case over to prosecutors."
The goalkeeper, whose name was withheld, was briefly a member of the South Korea squad in 2008.
He is the first known player to turn himself in for ties to match-fixing since the K-League launched a wide-reaching probe into the problem.
Players have until the end of this month to come forward in return for reduced penalties from the league as part of a league amnesty.
The K-League's sting has already led to life bans for 10 players - eight from the Daejeon Citizen team alone - in the most embarrassing scandal since the country's professional league was established in 1983.
Last month a player was found dead in a hotel room and media reports claimed a suicide note was found with reference to a match-fixing ring.
Even the top-flight military side Sangmu Phoenix was not immune to corruption, three of its players being hauled in last week for questioning on suspicion of match-fixing.
The state-run sports bookmaker has stopped taking bets on games, while the government has threatened to stop funding any sports leagues found to be corrupt in any way.
A senior K-League official said that the Jeonbuk Motors keeper has admitted to fixing games last season when playing for rival team Chunnam Dragons.
"The goalkeeper first informed his Jeonbuk head coach Choi Kang-hee last Friday night," K-League secretary Ahn Gi-heon told Yonhap news agency. "After speaking with Lee Chul-geun, general manager of Jeonbuk, we decided to hand the case over to prosecutors."
The goalkeeper, whose name was withheld, was briefly a member of the South Korea squad in 2008.
He is the first known player to turn himself in for ties to match-fixing since the K-League launched a wide-reaching probe into the problem.
Players have until the end of this month to come forward in return for reduced penalties from the league as part of a league amnesty.
The K-League's sting has already led to life bans for 10 players - eight from the Daejeon Citizen team alone - in the most embarrassing scandal since the country's professional league was established in 1983.
Last month a player was found dead in a hotel room and media reports claimed a suicide note was found with reference to a match-fixing ring.
Even the top-flight military side Sangmu Phoenix was not immune to corruption, three of its players being hauled in last week for questioning on suspicion of match-fixing.
The state-run sports bookmaker has stopped taking bets on games, while the government has threatened to stop funding any sports leagues found to be corrupt in any way.
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