BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) An investigation by Hungarian authorities into corruption in football has led to its first convictions, while the trial continued on Friday of a Singaporean businessman accused of being the head of a global match-rigging syndicate.
A Hungarian player and a former referee have been found guilty of trying to fix a local under-19 match in 2010. Their convictions are the first since inquiries that have led to some 50 people being charged got underway in 2009.
According to Thursday's decision by a Budapest court, Csaba Ponczok, playing for Videoton-Puskas Akademia, tried to bribe the goalkeeper of visiting Ferencvaros to allow at least four goals. The goalkeeper later reported the match-fixing attempt, while the home team won 1-0.
Janos Csak, a former referee, was fined 450,000 forints ($1,850) for his involvement in the bribery attempt.
Csak is also a defendant in another match-fixing case in Hungary, where the main defendant of 12 on trial is Tan Seet Eng, a Singaporean also known as Dan Tan, the alleged head of a crime syndicate suspected of rigging matches across the world. The case got underway in January.