Czech police have been conducting an operation on suspicion of corruption and fraud related to sports betting on Czech football matches, and have detained dozens of people, according to High Prosecutor Radim Dragoun from the High Public Prosecutor’s Office (VSZ) in Olomouc.
Police searched residences and other properties, Drahoun said in a statement on the VSZ website.
Prosecutors did not specify the locations, but police officers from the Zlin Regional Police Directorate are participating in the case alongside detectives from the National Centre Against Organised Crime (NCOZ). VSZ is supervising the case.
“Criminal proceedings are underway at multiple locations in the Czech Republic and abroad, and several dozen people have been detained,” said Dragoun, adding that no further information can be provided now, but may be available in the coming days.
According to iSport.cz, the police operation primarily concerns Moravia, as well as top league and youth matches, and the suspects include Jan Wolf, the mayor of Karvina, which owns a top league club, and Karvina player Samuel Sigut. The investigation also involves professional referees. The server reported that Europol and Interpol are also involved in the operation, and the raid was preceded by a three-year investigation.
The leadership of the Czech Football Association (FACR) convened a meeting of an emergency executive committee in response to the situation, according to the iSport.cz server, which was the first to report on the police raid.
“A massive operation has been underway since 6 am, likely the largest in the history of Czech football,” wrote FACR President David Trunda to members of the executive committee, in a text message quoted by iSport.cz. “The operation is 99% concentrated primarily in Moravia, involving several dozen people. This is the result of cooperation between FACR and the Czech police. The ethics commission will initiate proceedings today against more than 40 players, officials, referees and clubs, including those from the top league down to the 4th division plus youth leagues.”
FACR then gave a press conference at 11 am, at which Trunda stated that FACR had initiated the police intervention, and the case does not involve anyone from the FACR leadership.
He said that the FACR Commission of Ethics has launched 47 disciplinary proceedings in connection with the investigation.
“This morning, I convened an emergency executive committee meeting, and with the participation of Commission of Ethics chairman Martin Holub and Integrity Officer Kamil Javurek, we discussed all the steps that need to be taken,” said Trunda. “I also invited Tomas Barta, the executive director of the League Football Association. It is important to emphasise that the investigation does not involve anyone from the Czech football leadership. UEFA has been informed of the situation since the start and has commended the FACR’s approach.”
The targets of the proceedings launched by the FACR Ethics Commission include Wolf, and Sigut, as well as former referee Pavel Byma and Martin Latka, co-owner of the Opava second-league club.
The police launched the operation just two days before the Czech national team’s crucial World Cup qualifying playoff against Ireland. “Unfortunately, we couldn’t influence the timing,” Trunda noted.
Trunda, who replaced Petr Fousek in the position last May, said he believed that the investigation would be another step to completely clean Czech football, which has been plagued by several corruption scandals in the past.
Boris Stastny (Motorists), Minister for Sport, Health and Prevention, wrote on social media that he was closely monitoring the investigation. “I have full confidence in the cooperation between the Czech police, international police organisations, the Czech Football Association, and the UEFA Anti-Match-Fixing Unit,” he wrote. “Influencing sports competitions in connection with betting is a scourge for sport, and the uncompromising fight against match-fixing must be supported to the utmost.”
In its latest annual report, NCOZ warned that the growth of online sports betting has significantly increased the volume of money flowing through this sector. The online interconnectedness of the international sports environment attracts organised crime groups due to greater opportunities for profit; these groups are very often involved in match fixing and also use it to launder money from illegal betting or other unlawful activities, said NCOZ.
The Czech Criminal Code does not specify match-fixing as a separate criminal offence. According to NCOZ, influencing sports competitions may fall under several more general criminal offences, particularly fraud or bribery.
