Spanish police arrest 23 for alleged soccer match-fixing in Spain, Andorra and Gibraltar

• Spanish police arrest 23 people as part of an investigation into possible match-fixing in Spain.
• Police say the ring allegedly made up to 500,000 euros ($540,750) through small wagers.
• An investigation was conducted in 2021 and 2022 with assistance from international organizations.

Spanish police announced on Tuesday that 23 people, including soccer players, had been detained as part of an investigation into possible match-fixing in non-professional soccer leagues in Spain, Andorra, and Gibraltar.

According to the police, those detained are suspected of being part of a ring that allegedly made up to 500,000 euros ($540,750) through small wagers with payouts that were too low to raise regulatory red flags. The ring allegedly did this by acting on information from players who then influenced the results of the games.

“A second layer of the scam comprised soccer players who took advantage of their position to organize the fixing in the teams under their influence,” police said.

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No players were named, but the police claimed that the ring targeted about 30 matches in amateur leagues like Spain’s third division and the divisions in the microstate of Andorra and the British colony Gibraltar.

The Andorran Football Federation declared it was analyzing the data and working with the legal and sporting authorities on their inquiry.

The association issued a statement saying, “We mourn these charges which stain the image of clubs and players and the various collaborators.”

Requests for feedback from representatives of the Spanish and Gibraltarian football associations went unanswered.

The investigation was conducted in 2021 and 2022 with assistance from a number of organizations, including LaLiga, the European regulatory body UEFA’s Anti-Match-Fixing Unit, the Spanish football association RFEF, the Betting Market Global Investigation Service (SIGMA), and LaLiga.

Europol and Interpol, two international police organizations, also supported it.

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