People have heard about betting schemes for a while, says Top Hat – 05/11/2023 – Sport

Major Hugo Jorge Bravo, of the Military Police of Goiás, is pragmatic. The president who kicked off the investigation into the Brazilian football betting scandal refuses to do like other clubs in the A and B series of the Brazilian Championship.

He has no intention of bringing together Vila Nova’s professional squad to warn of the dangers of involvement with match-fixing gangs.

“I don’t do that. My business is the action itself. We’ve already shown them that we don’t admit that and we lead by example. I don’t need to say that they will be punished. I’m not going to teach a bunch of big guys. They know what it is what is right and what is wrong. The boys at the base, yes, we guide”, he explains.

It is with this direct style that he discards the possibility that other leaders of national football were surprised by the size of Operation Maximum Penalty, triggered by the Public Ministry of Goiás, to investigate betting schemes.

“Everyone who is in the middle of football knows what is happening. Anyone who says they haven’t heard this in the hallways is lying. Everyone has been listening to this for a long time”, he adds.

Bravo says that, upon learning that defensive midfielder Romário had been offered BRL 150,000 to commit a penalty in a 2022 Series B match, he began to gather evidence of the case. The experience of 13 years as a police officer served him at this time. When he gathered elements that he thought were sufficient, he filed a complaint with the Public Ministry. It was what detonated the Maximum Penalty, in February of this year.

The second phase of the investigation was launched last Monday (8), when prosecutors presented new names of players who allegedly pocketed between R$50,000 and R$500,000 to receive yellow or red cards or commit penalties. This was possible after analyzing the contents of computers and cell phones seized in a previous phase of the operation.

For the MP, the leader of the group of gamblers is Bruno Lopes de Moura, a futsal athlete. According to prosecutor Fernando Cesconetto, another 16 people could still become defendants.

The Minister of Justice and Public Security, Flavio Dino, ordered the Federal Police to also investigate the manipulation of sports betting.

This Thursday (11), Senate leaders decided to create a new thematic committee, the Sports Committee, which will discuss the scheme. The most talked about name to assume the presidency of the group is the former striker Romário (PL-RJ). The federal government is also preparing a Provisional Measure to regulate the sector and prohibit players and managers from betting.

Nine athletes have already been removed by their teams due to alleged involvement in manipulation of eight matches in Series A and B last year. They can be suspended for up to two years and, in case of recurrence, be banned from football. Which, for the president of Vila Nova, has already happened.

“I think that such an athlete is banned. It will take a lot of confidence for a club to hire him. You will always be in doubt”, says Bravo.

With heavy criticism of Romário –the steering wheel of his team–, some unprintable, he claims he was not surprised by the dimension that the case took, as well as the possibility of new accusations arising. With the thought that the cases refer only to the 2022 Brazilian, the CBF does not consider the possibility of paralyzing the tournament currently in dispute.

“There’s a feeling of disappointment. The guy can earn well and do that. Character is not associated with sex, race, social condition. Character is something you have or you don’t have. It’s something that puts the work of many people in the club, from the manager to the doorman, the cook…”, he analyzes.

In an interview with GloboEsporte.com, Romário confirmed that he had received offers from bettors. He has already given testimony to the Public Ministry.

For Hugo Jorge Bravo, the “message” to the athletes involved and to those who think about getting involved should be punishment.

“Certain championships should not have any type of bet. Tournaments such as the second division, under-20… There cannot also be bets on individual actions, such as lateral, corner. This facilitates manipulation.”