FIFA bans 3 South Africans over pre-World Cup match-fixing

FIFA bans 3 South Africans over pre-World Cup match-fixing

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 12:49 p.m. ET

ZURICH (AP) FIFA has banned three more former South African Football Association officials over match-fixing in friendly games ahead of the country's hosting of the 2010 World Cup.

FIFA on Monday banned former SAFA chief executive Leslie Sedibe for five years and fined him 20,000 Swiss francs ($20,200). The governing body also banned Steve Goddard and Adeel Carelse, both former officials at SAFA's referees department, for two years each.

Last year, Lindile Kika, SAFA's head of national teams in 2010, was banned from all soccer activities for six years.

FIFA believes that at least one of the South African national team's friendly games in the weeks ahead of the World Cup was fixed by the referee. SAFA officials were under investigation for allowing a company controlled by match-fixers to appoint the referees for the games.

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This story has been corrected to show three officials were banned, not two.

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