Bolivian football has been paralyzed since its president, Fernando Costa, exploded a bomb, claiming that he had seen “very serious” material that indicated a corruption plot in the main championship being played in the country. Costa did not give names but pointed to leaders, referees and players. The first division decided to suspend the ongoing competition and the 2023 Cup Tournament, because it is understood that some of the matches played in them were rigged. To prevent Bolivia from being left out of the international circuits, an “express championship” will be played in the following months, which will allow the clubs to qualify for the South American cups. It will also serve to relegate less competitive clubs.
Part of the FBF evidence is based on an audio that captures the conversation between Marco Rodriguez, president of the Vaca Diez club, which has just been promoted to the professional division, and referee Gaad Flores. “There have to be five goals in the game, regardless of who it is. It is important that there are three in the first half. You can charge us a penalty, don't worry. Let them score those three goals in the first half,” the club president explains to the referee. “Okay, perfect, doc... Have you already spoken to Nacional? “answers the other person, who was identified as referee Flores. He is referring to Nacional Potosi, another professional team, which on 16 August beat Vaca Diez 5-0, under the refereeing of Flores. In the audio, the leader responds that yes, those from Nacional Potosi are aware and he mentions the goalkeeper of this team, Said Mustafa. Although he accepts that losing by “many more goals” will be a “hard blow”, he claims that it is the only way to “receive more” money. After the recording became known, Rodriguez requested leave from the presidency of his club. He noted that he does it “with his head held high” and to avoid damage to the team's reputation. For his part, the referee involved declared that he was the one who recorded the conversation with Rodriguez and that he did so with the intention of reporting the crime to the country's Referees Committee. He also claimed that he had not received any money and that he had refereed the match correctly. The Council dismissed the entire Referees Committee, composed of Alejandro Mancilla, Wilson Estrada and Juan Cardozo. It is suspected that they were aware of the arrangements, which they denied. In addition, another audio was made known, in which referee Orlando Quintana is referred to, who also pleaded innocent. And the Independiente Petrolero club made it known that it suspected the ethics of four players, but that it did not have enough evidence to reveal their identity.
Another club president who has made the news has been Marcelo Claure, a Bolivian businessman who lives in the United States and who, as he wrote on a social network, has invested “millions of dollars” in Bolivar, one of the most important teams in the country. “If I don't see a total restructuring of Bolivian football”, the millionaire posted, “and all this corruption is cleaned up, the Bolivar project is over for me and I will be the first to leave Bolivia and not invest more.” Claure asks that new referees be brought in, “preferably from outside”, that betting on Bolivian football be banned and that all those involved in cheating be expelled. He also calls for reducing the number of first division teams to 12 (currently there are 17) and making the clubs' finances transparent. But the tone of his communications is pessimistic: “I don't know if it is possible to play again without knowing who is bought,” he said. The Superior Council of Bolivian football decided to require the company that markets sporting events in Bolivia, to withdraw the betting license of its company. This has been linked to match-fixing. If the television company does not do what they ask, the FBF will file a legal claim against them.
Source: El Pais
