A match-fixing scandal has emerged during the Fiji Muslim Sports Association Inter District Championships in Nadroga.
Defending champions Nadi and Sabeto influenced the match result to eliminate Maigania from a quarterfinal berth.
Match fixing is a serious matter that undermines integrity of the sport and while it is hard to prove it, there’s always a hint of two that supports the claim.
To prevent it from happening in the future, the FMSA must deal without fear or favour, suspend, and ban or impose heavy fines to individual[s], officials, players and the teams from competing in future sanctioned tournaments
Live coverage, lacklustre affair
The Nadi-Sabeto match was live on Facebook and one could draw anything to their liking, fix or no fix is a discretion.
Nadi with a host of district representatives put on a dismissal performance, while Sabeto tagged along without much football intent.
In a strange twist, the FMSA had initially suspended Sabeto but under burden of proof, they later revised the decision to hold Nadi for being an equal participant.
And why not?
In sports no one is bigger than the organization, including president Javid Ahamad and his board, who must take swift action in identifying the wrongdoers and putting them in their rightful place.
Under spotlight
The FMSA and FANCA Federation, are coalition partners of the Five Nations Muslim tournament and they have previously come under intense scrutiny.
In 2022, FANCA, a match-fixing scandal involving a prominent New Zealand resident and Fiji team footballer William Valentine, brokered a deal that was later made viral in the public domain.
One Farad Bhamji offered monetary rewards to compromise the final game in favour of New Zealand against Fiji at Nadi’s Prince Charles Park.
William refused the undertaking as Fiji went on to beat New Zealand 1-0 to win the championship.
And in the face of public outcry, FANCA president Mohammed Yusuf promised a fine tooth comb investigation.
“A team from the Fiji Football Association is investigating a match-fixing case that allegedly happened before the FANCA final between Fiji and New Zealand,” he briefed the media.
What, if anything, came out of the investigation is still unknown.
It was later learned through a reliable Sportsone source that Bhamji was involved with the New Zealand team in some capacity to Fiji during the 2024 FANCA Muslim tournament.
At the very event, and under tandem as hosts, a free-for-all brawl broke out at Lautoka’s Churchill Park.
The USA and Australia game was abandoned out of safety concerns for fans and witnesses levelled blame on the lack of security and police presence at the park.
The USA and Australia were suspended from the tournament, and Yusuf again instituted an investigation, but the outcome has not been made public.
Fair play
The integrity of the sport is critical to any tournament.
It is in the best interest of the fans and stakeholders that fair play is maintained in football.
For FMSA must take serious actions on any contravention of the association’s integrity.
