The South American Football Confederation (Conmebol) and the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) signed an agreement to finance initiatives by the national entity to combat match-fixing, according to publication by Guilherme Amado, from the Metrópoles portal.
The resources come from the amount recovered from Fifagate – considered the biggest corruption scandal in world football, according to Conmebol. The process involved the arrest of José Maria Marin, former president of the CBF. In this context, a portion of US$ 100 million, which Conmebol claims to have recovered from Fifagate, was diverted from the Brazilian entity.
In summary, Conmebol will assume responsibility for making payments directly to the companies indicated by the CBF. The objective is to implement initiatives to combat match-fixing and irregular betting. So far, the specific amount earmarked for Brazil in this agreement has not been publicly disclosed.
Ronaldo ‘Fenômeno’ comments on cases of match fixing
Ronaldo Fenômeno, a former soccer player and majority shareholder of Cruzeiro, commented on cases of match-fixing that are being investigated in Brazilian soccer. One of the Cruzeiro players had his name mentioned in the inquiry and was removed from the club’s activities as a preventive measure.
According to Fenômeno, five-time world champion with the Brazilian team in 2002, it is essential that everyone involved in this match-fixing scheme be severely punished. He believes that it is necessary to use these punishments as an example in order to discourage others who might be intent on committing sport-related wrongdoing.
“Of course, it saddens me a lot to see the history of the sport being tarnished in this way; the fraudulent activities of some discrediting the many others without any involvement; the lack of ethics, principles, integrity and, above all, respect for the fans on the part of those involved dirtying the image of football as a whole,” he posted.
On the other hand, Ronaldo mentioned that he feels relieved to follow a serious investigation process and the “quick action of the clubs in support of the authorities”.
