Two footballers jailed for match-fixing in Vietnam

AFP - 26 January 2007 12:19

Le Quoc Vuong sits after he was sentenced to six years in jail at the end of a two-day trial at Ho Chi Minh City´s People´s Court. A Vietnamese court has jailed two former footballers for fixing an international match but only handed suspended prison sentences to six young players involved in the scam.

HO CHI MINH CITY (AFP) - A Vietnamese court has jailed two former footballers for fixing an international match but only handed suspended prison sentences to six young players involved in the scam.

All eight defendants were found guilty in the high-profile trial of rigging an under-23 match against Myanmar at the 2005 Southeast Asian Games in return for cash from a betting syndicate.

"The defendants used their football careers to organise gambling for money," Judge Le Van Ba told the Ho Chi Minh City People´s Court.

Team vice captain Le Quoc Vuong received six years´ jail for organising the scam and bribing his fellow players to ensure Vietnam, the strong favourites, beat Myanmar by just 1-0 in the match in Manila.

Vuong was also convicted of gambling and fined 25,600 dollars.

Truong Tan Hai, a former Saigon Port club player, was jailed for three years for acting as the middleman between Hai and the betting syndicate.

However, the court showed leniency toward popular 22-year-old striker Pham Van Quyen and five of his team mates.

It ordered suspended two-year jail terms for Quyen, who was also fined 1,250 dollars, and Chau Le Phuoc Vinh, Le Van Truong and Tran Hai Lam, and suspended terms of two and a half years for Le Bat Hieu and Huynh Quoc Anh.