South Korean Footballers Charged in Bribery Scandal

Posted June 9th, 2011 at 5:45 am (UTC-5)
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At least 10 South Korean football players have been charged in connection with a scheme to fix matches in exchange for money.

Prosecutors in the southeastern city of Changwon have accused the players of accepting bribes from gambling brokers to fix games played in April. Eight of the players are from a single club, the Daejeon Citizen, and one of them allegedly received about $110,000.

A player from Gwangju is also accused of accepting bribes, while a member of the Pohang Steelers allegedly bet on the result of games after learning the match was rigged.

At least two gambling brokers have been charged for providing the cash to bribe players.

The South Korean government has vowed to impose harsh penalties for people involved in match-fixing, including hefty fines and jail terms, and a lifetime ban from their sport.