By IVES GALARCEP
Just two days after a pair of Belize National Team players came forward to reveal a plot to bribe them to throw Belize’s Gold Cup opener vs. the U.S. Men’s National Team, CONCACAF has stepped forward to reveal the latest on their investigation into the matter.
CONCACAF released the following statement, which, among other things, reveals that CONCACAF has identified the person accused of attempted to bribe Belize players into throwing the USA match:
CONCACAF was notified of an attempt to bribe Belize national team players Woodrow West and Ian Gaynair on July 7th, two days ahead of their Group A, Gold Cup match against the United States that took place in Portland, OR.
Both players directly approached confederation officials immediately after the incident took place to report the attempted offense.
Following the report by the players, CONCACAF launched a full investigation alongside FIFA.
Initial findings of this investigation have resulted in a positive identification of the individual attempting the bribery.
We want to thank Woodrow West and Ian Gaynair and recognize them for their bravery and commitment to preserving the integrity of our game.
The fight against match-manipulation is a top priority for CONCACAF. In alignment with FIFA guidelines and with the help of outside entities such as INTERPOL, we have taken all necessary measures to ensure the legitimacy of each game played throughout the 2013 Gold Cup. In the past months, CONCACAF, FIFA and INTERPOL have conducted three separate seminars with all Member Associations in the region that have focused on educating, identifying and preventing match manipulation.
We are precluded from commenting any further on this matter, due to the ongoing status of the investigation.
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