How football teams cheat in the game
2 min readCheating has always been a normal occurrence in our daily life, whether it occurs during games, sports or more or less everywhere else. In football, this circumstance is no different. Football players or teams have always thought of different ways to cheat in the game ever since the sport was created but it has become increasingly popular after the invention of the internet, mainly through the hidden web.
Ways that football teams cheat
Match Fixing
Fixed matches are a serious problem for the football industry and certainly the worst form of cheating possible. Throughout the years, there have been various instances of fixed football matches, whether they were for the benefit of a particular team, or else for the potential profit through a number of deep web fixed matches services. Football teams usually do this through bribing match officials or their opponents.
Fixed Draws in competitions
Just like fixed matches, certain football teams are also known to cheat their draws in major competitions to draw against teams of less ability. Taking example former FIFA president, Sepp Blatter who admitted that European football draws have been fixed in the past through the use of hot or cold balls. This claim by Blatter certainly wasn’t a surprise to many, as there were several instances where European football draws were leaked on the dark web, even before the draws had even taken place.
Breaching of financial rules
This way of cheating is mainly common within the largest teams of football. These teams are generally owned by billionaires who are ready to invest a lot of money into their clubs in aim to get themselves an advantage over other teams who are less financially equipped.
In order to prevent this kind of thing happening, UEFA, the European association for football announced fair play rules in which teams are prohibited from spending more on players than from what they generate from tickets, sponsorships and other contracts.
However, big teams always find a way to breach these rules, most commonly through the involvement of the dark web and deep web. In a very recent relatable case, English side Manchester City were involved in a scandal for breaching the financial rules, as a result for their attempt to cheat the system, they were fined £30 Million and were banned from UEFA competitions for the following 2 years. Luckily for Man City, the fine was reduced to £10 Million and their ban was lifted.