It was January 4, 2023, and Dolný Kubín faced NK Rijeka, currently third overall in the Croatian league, in a friendly match. Result? The Slovaks lost 0:14 after conceding six goals in the first half and the remaining eight after the break. On the basis of various complaints, the matter was first dealt with by the Department of Integrity of the Slovak Football Association (SFZ), which subsequently submitted a complaint to the Disciplinary Committee.
It’s not just a big difference in scores. Other circumstances are also significant. Not a single player from the Slovak club took part in the event, only players who were on trial at MFK took part. These were footballers from the former Yugoslavia who were secured by a player agency.
“Simplified, it can be stated that due to the active actions of the officials of MFK Dolný Kubín, a match was played that was highly likely to be misused by an organized group of bettors. Although all the circumstances indicated this, the club not only did not prevent it, but by its actions actively caused the match to take place, even without its own players,” reads the official statement.
According to Mihálo, the financial penalty, i.e. the mentioned 5,000 euros, reflects the international impact of the event and should have a preventive effect on other football clubs as well, so that they are more vigilant when choosing cooperation with various entities and do not become easy prey for suspicious groups.
The Department of Integrity received a request for cooperation from the club itself, which itself understood what it had gotten itself into. According to the union’s manager Jakub Čavoja, an international investigation is underway in connection with the suspicion of match-fixing during the training camp in Croatia.
Everything points to the fact that persons who are not members of Slovak football are behind the manipulation. “We cannot provide more information at this time. However, we can confirm that those already collected are aimed at persons from abroad, therefore they fall under the purview of other unions and law enforcement authorities,” explains Čavoj and believes that the mentioned case will serve as a warning as well as a prevention for other clubs.
