By Walter Broeckx
As a ref I am rather well placed to hear some things that others never hear. I have heard stories told by other refs on how they have helped teams to stay up or to become champions.
Some did it because the president of a club came in the dressing room before the game and offered him a sum in cash. He accepted and when the game was going to a 0-0 he gave a penalty a few minutes from the end and then made an end to the game. Do I need to say that even he admitted that it was not even close to a foul but that he just did it for the money he had received?
I’ve heard of game where the president of a club had to win or he would go down. He bought the ref, whom he knew personally, and even bribed the keeper of the other team to win the game. Even if his team had only scored a handful of goals in their last 15 games, in that last game of the season they were leading 0-4 after 20 minutes. The president of that club even told me after 2 penalties in their favour and 2 “mistakes” by the keeper he went to the keeper to beg him to stop it before it would become too obvious.
I know the persons involved and some have been big names in my country in football. But as it is some years ago I cannot change the events any more but I know what I know and this gives me another view on certain things.
I could also add the UEFA final some years ago when a Spanish ref got “a loan” from the president of Anderlecht just before the match against Nottingham Forest. A match that was won in a rather controversial way with some penalty decisions that gave Anderlecht the win.
This is what we could call the simple bribing of referees.
A few years ago, 4 to be exact, the football world in Italy was in crisis because after some phone tapping they discovered that some clubs “ordered” referees for their games. Juventus was punished with relegation, AC Milan, Udinese where also involved. Inter Milan seemed to escape but a few days ago some new tapes have been released during the court session and they have brought in to the open that also Inter Milan was involved in those things.
As we have learned from the “Calciopoloscandal” in Italy they phoned to order referees for specific games in order to get good decisions from the refs in charge. Who on earth would ask a certain referee if you know he will not give you good decisions? The clubs in Italy phoned to let the people who appointed the refs in Italy in order to get the right man for the right job.
But now it seems that Inter Milan even tried to influence which referee they got in the Champions League. On 15 and 16 September 2004 there were a few phone calls between Inter top man Giacinto Facchetti and Pierluigi Pairetto, who was responsible for the appointments of referees in those days.
Several phones were tapped in those days between the two people and why on earth would they phone? Was it just to know which meal they should prepare for the ref? No because in fact it was for the away games he called. Was it to be sure they got a ref that would give them a helping hand when playing in another country ? In fact it was for the games in Anderlecht which they won 1-3 and the game in Valencia which they won 1-5.
For both of these matches the Inter top men knew some weeks before who would be in charge. Why? Even the refs themselves don’t know this until a few days before the game. They know they have a game in the CL but it is kept secret until the weekend or just after the weekend. But as is clear to see Inter knew who they would have as a ref weeks before the game. Again I ask why?
Just for fun? Just to know? Could be but when I look at what was happening in Italy in that period I wonder if this were just some innocent phone calls ?
So the headlines in my country today are ‘Inter ordered ref against Anderlecht’ or even ‘Inter bought ref for Anderlecht game”. Is there yet any hard evidence of that? No. But with the things I know of the football world from the inside and take this as one and then I think of the Calciopoloscandal in Italy and take this also as 1 and then when I add this up the result is two.
If Inter did not order or bribe the refs then they are very honourable people but do you know many man of honour in football ? I think I know one but that is about all. This must be cleared up by Uefa as soon as possible. This is about the credibility of football in the Champions League. If this goes down the drain by actions like this, this could spell trouble for many clubs and for Uefa.
I’m waiting on how Uefa will react on these revelations in court. If they do nothing, then I think they want to cover-up the mess that is not visible for most of us.
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You have time.
are thieves
In case anyone is confused, I was trying to be very clever today with the programming on the site, and I totally screwed up.
As a result two copies of this article have appeared. I have made such a mess everywhere I am not going to take either down, but just to let you know, I do realise this did not work well!
Tony
Walter. How much do you reckon ‘Arry boy bribed Webb to throw the spuds game? Sorry…bad mistake. ‘Arry doesn’t work for Pompey any more. 😮
Tony, are you going to do a piece on kreonke spending all his money on buying the rams?
I assume you haven’t already, though I am having a bit of trouble making head and tails of the new site layout.
I also have this strange feeling (may be its me alone) that certain refs in the EPL are bribed. You could see ManU getting certain ‘fouls’ which an Arsenal player wouldn’t dream of getting. I also want to know why a certain Howard Webb gets all of his callings wrong when ManU is getting the advantage.
Simple case in point. One just needs to re-watch Man Utd vs Arsenal with that pesky Mike Dean and how he hands Arsenal players yellow cards with the slightest of fouls.
The Goalkeeper?!!! Wow!! I knew that fixing was a part of all games and that officials could be bought (agree with you Zack! Dean is from the sewers!) but I never knew you could buy the players out.. I mean thats the exact reason why I stopped watching cricket cos the “players” were bought! so watching cricket was more like watching Wrestling (WWE) where everything is staged! kicking the opposition is one thing, atleast it shows that you WANT to win (not that am patronizing Pulis et al.) but the players being bought is really sad… It takes me back to Lord wenger’s interview a few months ago where he claimed a few of his players were bought.. Man! that would’ve sucked big time.. Your this straight guy who spends all your time and energy building a team and preparing them to win and one prick just doesnt get enough of the 50k he recieves a week (read JT!) and he comes on the pitch and screws it all up! Few people never realise that Football isn’t JUST a sport!
Well, that is just a few examples of things I know and I really don’t go looking for them. It happens in my country and I really believe that most people are the same all over the world so that everyone has his price.
Someone need to investigate Mike Dean and Howard Webb.
In the world cup year the FA has chosen that Terry-Lampard-Cole should become champion in the hope that this will lift the England squad for the WC.
Its a sad reflection of todays world that dedication ,hard work ,pride
and honour are left by the wayside in persuit of wealth and fame.Your
findings Walter ,thus , comes as no suprise .Sports is a noble art but the vast sums one is able to reap [or rape ]from it has turned it into a joke [as someone pointed out -just like the WWE].
I belive that there those who fight these injustices and are noble and honest persons but the going is though and the crooks outnumber them.Let us hpoe that they will prevail and justice be done.AW is one noble soul trying to teach the masses the right way the game should be played ,but alas ,they laugh and redicule him .
Sometimes I see him like “the Man from La Mancha”,only that I am cheering him on.Onward Don AW !
Walter, last night’s game was diabolical. Two clear handballs not given. I am sure that it is intentional.
I am also interested in what I think should have been a third penalty. There was a long throw into the box towards Davies. Drogba was behind Davies and went through him/over him and won the ball. Walter, was that a foul?
Cape gooner, I think you refer to the incident in the last minute of the game ?
For a technical problem with my ditigal device I could not record the match and as I had two other programms to record for my wife my sports channel went down as it can only handle two programms at the same time. So I could not review it, if there was given a replay. I had to check live score to see the final result.
But the rule is that if you go for a header and you win the ball without contact in the air and you then, because of your jump, make contact AFTER heading the ball it should be no foul (unless you jump in with your feet against a players head or knee in the back or dangerous or excessiv force…).
So (listen) very carefully as I just have seen it once but on that occasion it looked that Drogba first won the ball and after that he went in the player. So I can understand not give a foul.
But the Terry handball…. Terry can do whatever he wants for the moment as he has been declared a saint by the FA ? He can try to break players legs, he can handball…and he knows he can.
AA wasn’t picked last year in the semi-final against Mr A.
Clear penalty against Chelsea not awarded at Wembley on Saturday. Their preferred opponents in the final got a ridiculous decision to wipe out Crouch’s equaliser Sunday. Last night two more clear penalties not awarded against them.
I’m sure Mr A. will put his 5 children up for sale to a Chinese gangmaster if anything untoward is going on.
Won’t he??
John Terry is serial deliberate handball merchant. Enough said.
Tony may remember that early last year I mentioned the reports about the Italian refereeing scandal extending beyond Italy into UEFA tournaments and the fact that UEFA had taken no steps to order an investigation.
The evidence is in the tapes used in the Italian courts to prove the corruption at home.
Take a look at calcioitaliascandal.blogspot.com which described the whole story as it unfolded. For just one example where UEFA games were involved go to calcioitaliascandal.blogspot.com/2006/05/wiretaps.html and read the transcripts in the entry for 4th May 2006. Choosing refs for UEFA games is specifically mentioned, as is a gift of a Maserati.
Light comedy comes up when Graham Poll is selected ahead of the previously “agreed” ref. You see – NO-ONE likes Graham Poll!
Kevin thanks for the link.
One thing I picked from the articles is this part:
“This afternoon the FIGC officially sent a letter to FIFA and UEFA to revoke De Santis’ candidacy for the tournament. Assistant referees Alessandro Griselli and Marco Ivaldi, plus designators Bergamo and Pairetto, will also lose their World Cup passes.
De Santis, a 44-year-old police chief constable, is one of the people under investigation as part of the scandal spreading throughout Italian football.”
What was the job a certain Howard Webb does ?????? And wasn’t that the reason why he should be above any suspicion ????
De Santis was banned for 4,5 years for his involvement.