The Superior Court of Sports Justice (STJD) released the report on the conclusion of the investigation into John Textor‘s complaints. This is because the owner of SAF do Botafogo had alleged manipulation of results in the Brazilian Championship.
Therefore, the auditor’s suggestion is a six-year suspension and a fine of R$2 million for Textor. This would be the greatest punishment in the court’s history.
STJD considered the evidence to be ‘useless’
The entity analyzed the evidence presented by Textor and judged it as “useless”. Therefore, it came to the conclusion that the actions constitute sporting infractions against the honor of seven sporting entities, nine athletes and nine referees.
Furthermore, “infringement against sporting ethics and personal motivation in requesting the initiation of the investigation” was found.
In March, Textor claimed to have evidence of manipulation of Brazilian Championship games and presented it to the STJD. In April, he published a text on his website alleging manipulation in the game between Palmeiras and São Paulo.
The investigation began after the episodes, at the request of the Attorney General for Sports Justice, Palmeiras, São Paulo, the Professional Athletes Union of São Paulo and the National Association of Football Referees.
In the report, auditor Mauro Marcelo de Lima e Silva suggests referring the case to the Rio de Janeiro Court, treating it as criminal offenses:
“Considering that in theory the criminal offenses of Slanderous Reporting and False Reporting of Crime are configured, a full copy of this Inquiry should be forwarded to the Attorney General of Rio de Janeiro Doctor Luciano Oliveira Mattos de Souza for the measures he deems necessary”.
Games reported by John Textor
According to the report, Textor presented two videos, one lasting around six minutes and the other lasting around 47. Thus, the videos show the partners of Good Game, a company hired by the businessman, explaining the “matchfix” method.
In addition to the videos, Textor sent a PDF file entitled “level 3 game report between SE Palmeiras 5 x 0 São Paulo FC, held on 10/25/2023”. Another seven documents analyze the actions of referees in the following games:
- Palmeiras 1×0 Vasco da Gama, 27/08/2023
- Botafogo 1×2 Flamengo, 02/09/2023
- Atlético Mineiro 1×0 Botafogo, 16/09/2023
- Palmeiras 5×0 São Paulo, 25/10/2023
- Palmeiras 1×0 Bahia, 28/10/2023
- Botafogo 3×4 Palmeiras, 02/11/2023
- Botafogo 1×2 Bahia, 05/05/2024
“John Charles Textor hired the services of the company “Good Game”, under the pretext of forging alleged evidence about false match manipulations, to the detriment of the rights of individuals and legal entities unfairly accused by him”, concluded the report.
With the conclusion of the investigation, the Prosecutor’s Office will be notified and will have up to 60 days to file the complaint. Subsequently, the case will be judged by the Disciplinary Committee and, if there is an appeal, by the Plenary.
Official note from John Textor
It is clear that the black and white leader wasted no time and questioned the motivations behind the decision of Mauro Marcelo de Lima e Silva, rapporteur of the case, to suggest a six-year suspension for the businessman.
“Serious questions must be asked about the STJD Auditor, Mr. Mauro Marcelo de Lima e Silva, who appears to be acting according to someone else’s agenda”, highlighted John Textor.
“In addition to the disproportionate penalties recently suggested in your report, I am appalled by the fact that my search, in good faith, for the elucidation of facts and elements of match manipulation has led to serious accusations against me,” he added.