Explosive Report Lifts Lid on the Rotten Extent of Match Fixing in the ABC Motsepe League

• Corruption is undermining the integrity of South African football's lower leagues
• It appears that bribery and match-fixing continue to be the norm rather than the exception down there
• The ABC Motsepe League is currently mired in scandals that an investigative publication has delved deeply into

Stories of corruption in South African football are not new.

A tale as old time, bribery, match-fixing and other unsavoury practices have undermined the lower rungs of the local game.

Now, the Daily Maverick has conducted an in-depth exposé on the messy goings-on, particularly in the ABC Motsepe League, the third division run by the South African Football Association (SAFA). For starters, the 2016 ABC Motsepe League play-offs were influenced by a match-fixing syndicate.

The article read, among many other things:

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"An internal report exposes the cheating, names names ahead of a long-delayed criminal trial and shows SAFA did not fully follow its own recommendations by failing to make an example of those who engineered the plot. The South African Football Association’s (Safa) tough talk on tackling corruption is at odds with its actions in dealing with the problem – at least in one case.

SAFA claims it is “committed to the promotion of fair play, integrity and the eradication of maladministration, match-fixing and corruption in football”.

The entire article, compiled by the famous and feared investigative corps AmaBhungane, can be found here.

Fresh match-fixing Scandal rocks South African football as referees and clubs are suspended

African football can never seem to escape the scourge of match-fixing.

This time, it was the turn of South Africa to be embroiled in this long-standing disgrace. The country is a repeat offender in this regard, particularly at the lower levels of the game.

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The South African Football Association's Vhember region has suspended officials and clubs caught up in the compromising of the integrity of the game. They face charges of match-fixing, unethical conduct and the soliciting of bribes before fixtures took place.

The implicated clubs are from the Limpopo Football Association Leagues as well as the ABC Motsepe League's regional competition. Interestingly, SAFA chose to reveal the names of those involved.