AFP, Riyadh :
Saudi Arabia said on Thursday it is probing possible match fixing in the kingdom’s top football league. The General Authority for Sports, a government agency, said the Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SFF) joined the probe into “suspected manipulation of results” in some matches.
“This is after receiving information about it in the beginning of Ramadan,” the Muslim holy fasting month which began on June 6.
The sports authority said in a statement that it has heard testimony from “those involved”, but the investigation continues.
“It will submit the results to the SFF once they are complete so they can take the necessary measures,” the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said.
“The Authority stressed the importance of a fair competition.”
SPA did not give any details about those possibly implicated in the match fixing. The probe comes as the General Authority for Sports seeks to boost the kingdom’s international competitiveness, and to get more Saudis exercising.
The goals are part of the kingdom’s wide-ranging Vision 2030 and the National Transformation Programme for implementing it. The NTP sets five-year targets towards social and economic reforms aimed at diversifying the oil-dependent economy.
