THE Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) says it believes 2010 World Cup warm-up match between Nigeria and North Korea in June 2010 could have been pre-arranged.

The match was played on June 6 at the Makhulong Stadium in Tembisa, outside Johannesburg, and Nigeria won the game 3-1.

In a report on behalf of FIFA security team, Terry Steans alleged that the match officials led by Niger referee Ibrahim Chaibou were chosen by convicted Singaporean match-fixer Wilson Perumal and his Football 4U organisation.

Perumal is believed by both FIFA and Interpol of fixing matches in several countries, standing to make hundreds of thousands of dollars in illegal profits.

The match-fixing report, which was handed to South Africa Football Association (SAFA), said the Niger referee gave a harsh penalty against North Korea even when it seemed that the Korean defender did not commit an offence.

Obinna Nsofor stepped forward to score the resulting penalty in the 62nd minute and double the Eagles’ lead after Yakubu Aiyegbeni had put Nigeria in front.

Interestingly, Chaibou was also at the centre in another Eagles’ friendly which has also been listed by FIFA as “suspicious.”

Nigeria beat Argentina 4-1 in June 2011 in Abuja with several questionable calls by the Niger referee.

 However, spokesman for the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Ademola Olajire, told MTNFootball.com they are unaware of this allegation and have yet to be communicated on it.
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BERLIN (AP) — A German court ordered a partial retrial for two Croatian men found guilty in a match-fixing scandal that rattled Europe’s soccer establishment and sparked prosecutions across the continent.
Ante Sapina and Marijo Cvrtak were sentenced to 5 1/2 years in prison last year for their part in the manipulation of more than 20 games that included a qualifying match for the 2010 World Cup. The men earned millions from bets on the fixed matches.
Prosecutors complained that the verdict by a regional court in the western city of Bochum didn’t adequately consider the seriousness of the fraud committed by the men, and argued that Sapina’s deeds should be considered organized crime. Sapina’s lawyer, meanwhile, claimed that the Bochum court didn’t properly credit his client’s cooperation with authorities, which should have led to a reduced sentence.
Germany’s Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe agreed with the complaints and sent the case back to the lower court on Thursday. In particular, the Bochum court will now have to decide whether the two men’s actions constituted attempted or actual fraud, and what financial damages were suffered by people who placed bets on the fixed games. The retrial is unlikely to completely reverse the guilty verdicts but could lengthen or shorten the sentences the men will have to serve.
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