Europol and police teams from 13 European countries have uncovered an extensive criminal network which involves a total of 425 match officials, club officials, players, and serious criminals, from more than 15 countries, that are suspected of being involved in attempts to fix more than 380 professional football matches.

Europol, the European Union’s law enforcement agency, unveiled the so far outcome of a Joint Investigation Team (JIT), codenamed Operation VETO, ran between July 2011 and January 2013. 425 match officials, club officials, players, and serious criminals, from more than 15 countries, are suspected of being involved in attempts to fix more than 380 professional football matches. The activities formed part of a sophisticated organised crime operation, which generated over €8 million in betting profits and involved over €2 million in corrupt payments to those involved in the matches. In January 2011, an Europol report highlighted that cooperation and new types of action are required to combat transnational threats.

According to Europol, the organised criminal group behind most of these activities has been betting primarily on the Asian market. The ringleaders are of Asian origin, working closely together with European facilitators. During the investigation, links were also found to Russian-speaking and other criminal syndicates.

The European Agency also underlined that the international nature of match-fixing, exposed in this case, presents a major challenge to investigators and prosecutors. One fixed match can involve up to 50 suspects in 10 countries, spanning different legal frameworks and definitions of match-fixing and betting fraud. JIT Veto investigations are still ongoing.