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MATCH-FIXING SCANDAL

FOOTBALL

Uefa ‘worried’ by Italian match-fixing

Uefa said on Tuesday it had been shocked by reports that Italian second division games have been fixed for €100,000.

Uefa 'worried' by Italian match-fixing
Uefa general secretary Gianni Infantino. Photo: Joe Klamar / AFP

Uefa general secretary Gianni Infantino reacted after the president of Serie B club Catania reportedly admitted to buying the results of five matches in the past season.

“We are of course sad to learn what is happening. We are worried that a second division club can fix five matches paying €100,000per match,” Infantino told a press conference.

“We are worried about the situation and in general and that is why we are fighting against it.

“That's why we are working with the prosecutors, that's why we are working with associations.”

Italian police have arrested five people including Catania president Antonio Pulvirenti over the latest match-fixing scandal to rock Italian football. Pulvirenti made his confession on Monday, according to Gazzetta dello Sport newspaper.

“Unfortunately we are dealing with criminal organisations,” Infantino said of the Italian case.

Uefa is now using a sophisticated data collection system to monitor all first and second division games in Europe. There are also anti-fraud officers in each of Uefa's 54 members.

But another case involving Greek champions Olympiakos has also tainted Europe football.

The Pireaus team's owner Evangelos Marinakis has been banned from all football activities while a Greek judge looks into allegations that the shipping tycoon was part of a criminal gang that fixed Greek Super League matches between 2011 and 2013.

Infantino said that Olympiakos has been “provisionally” accepted for next season's Champions League while the investigation goes ahead.

“These kind of investigations can take some time. We need some clear evidence.”

Infantino said that in general, Uefa “cannot start taping phone calls or going to check bank accounts or whatever. For this we need the help of the prosecutors.”

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RACISM

VIDEO: Spain’s La Liga reviews video of boy racially abusing Vinicius

Spain's La Liga on Monday said it was reviewing a video of a child making racist insults towards Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior during the 2-2 draw with Valencia at the weekend.

VIDEO: Spain's La Liga reviews video of boy racially abusing Vinicius

“We’re in the process of studying and analysing the facts from a legal standpoint to see what we can and should do,” La Liga sources said.

In a video published by a journalist for ESPN Brasil, and picked up by Spanish media, a boy sitting in a woman’s lap can be heard calling Vinicius a “monkey”.

The Brazilian scored twice for Madrid as his team recovered from two goals down at Mestalla on Saturday.

Vinicius raised his fist in a “Black Power” salute after the first of his two goals at a ground where he was racially abused last season. Valencia subsequently banned three people from the stadium for life.

The 23-year-old has become a symbol of the fight against discrimination in Spanish football after suffering racist abuse on many occasions, and he was jeered repeatedly by home supporters on Saturday.

Jude Bellingham was sent off after the final whistle against Valencia for protesting after the referee blew the final whistle right before the England midfielder headed home what he thought was the winning goal.

READ ALSO: Football star Vinicius highlights racist behaviour from Spanish fans

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