Controversy in professional soccer in Colombia over course match-fixing

An alleged fix in a match in the second division of Colombian soccer that was evidenced on television produced a scandal in the country, where the government is calling for in-depth investigations into the case.

The meeting was played on Saturday in the city of Villavicencio (center). If Unión Magdalena defeated Llaneros FC at home, they sealed their promotion to the first division. Although the ‘Cyclone’ began losing by a goal, in minutes 90 + 5 and 90 + 6 they managed the comeback.

The second goal arouses suspicions of cheating. While the visit was looking for the goal, the rival players stayed still. At one point in the play, there were five forwards against two defenders and one of them even moved away to make way for an opponent.

Then one of the attackers is hand in hand with the goalkeeper, who makes a minimum effort to prevent the goal.

The Dimayor (Major Division of Colombian Soccer), the governing body of professional football in the country, announced this Sunday that it will investigate the case.

“The president of DIMAYOR, Fernando Jaramillo, in use of his administrative powers, has summoned the CHAMPIONSHIP DISCIPLINARY COMMITTEE and the DIMAYOR DISCIPLINARY COMMITTEE for tomorrow, to analyze the situation that occurred in the @ClubLlanerosFC vs @UnionMagdalena match,” the entity wrote. On twitter.

The president, Iván Duque, described what happened as a “national disgrace.”

“Sport requires transparency, honesty and zero tolerance for any situation that delegitimizes sports ethics,” he added on the social network.

The conservative president demanded that the “situation be clarified quickly.”

In an interview with the newspaper El Heraldo, the Minister of Sports, Guillermo Herrera, estimated that the event will be treated as “an act of corruption” and his portfolio will “follow up” on the Dimayor investigations.

“Seeing these acts of corruption, I would ask the Prosecutor’s Office to pronounce itself and review if a tax case must be filed to also start an investigation,” he added.

The Unión Magdalena has not commented on the accusations. In their social networks, the traditional Santa Marta team celebrates its return to the local soccer elite after two years of absence.

Meanwhile, Llaneros announced that he had initiated “internal investigations.”

This will be the second investigation opened against Colombian soccer teams in less than a week. Last Monday, the market regulatory authority announced that it is carrying out investigations against Unión Magdalena and 15 other clubs for allegedly preventing the transfer of their players and turning them into “hostages”. (D)