European club football association (UEFA) representatives have arrived in Cyprus on Monday morning. The representatives are said to be and currently in a meeting with the Cyprus Football Association (CFA) at the police headquarters in Nicosia. The reason for the meeting sterns from suspicious betting activity which could mean match fixing after red notices were dispatched.
The CFA were put on alert this week the They said received notifications concerning possible match-fixing. It is believed five fixtures in total, three for the second division league, and two for the cup.
“The reports said suspicious betting activity had been recorded in three second division games Ermis vs Digenis, Onisilos vs Digenis, and Othelos vs Xylotymbou and two cup fixtures.”
“The first cup fixture was played between first division side AEK and Karmiotissa with the report assigning blame on the latter.The other game was between Pafos FC and Ayia Napa but no responsibility was assigned.All reports have been forwarded to the police, “the CFA said.
Justice Minister George Savvides is also expected to meet the UEFA representatives. The issue came up on January 17, following a bomb attack against a football referee in Larnaca earlier in the day.
The car of 33-year-old referee Andreas Constantinou was planted with an improvised explosive device which caused extensively damaged when it went off. Fortunately, the vehicle was parked in the garage of the apartment building where the referee lives and no casualties were recorded.
The incident stirred up a reaction from other referees who showed support to their colleague, and hence leading the referees’ association to announce they would abstain indefinitely from matches in protest.
As a result, the CFA cancelled all league matches that weekend.The UEFA team that has arrived in Cyprus will cooperate with the police to investigate the matches for which the European football governing body issued the notices, over suspicion of foul play.
They will also train representatives of football clubs on how to deal with them. Around 80 notices have been received by the CFA in recent years, but police have so far failed to bring anyone to book.
