Well that is why Zeman is out of a job. Maybe so but do you really think the Mexican league is on the up and up and free of any corruption?
Never said that. I was only pointing out the error in the statement, " I do know you have the same owners owning multiple franchises (especially since the leagues inception) and this doesn't happen anywhere else in the world. "
True. But that's one of numerous examples in the last few years. Juve might as well have an asterisk next to every piece of hardware they win.
Apologies. I should have re-worded as I was mostly focusing on Europe as its the one I'm mostly familiar with. Can you imagine the backlash of what would happen in a Euro league of having Man United owners purchase Liverpool or Barca owners owning Valencia? I mean its virtually unheard of. Aside from this though, Concacaf leagues, (as we have seen) as well as UEFA, CONMEBOL, CAF or AFC, are far from being innocent angels either.
Back to the initial question, with MLS's golden boys (Landycakes & Becks) potentially finishing their MLS career after the '12 final, I'd be surprised if the final wasn't fixed. To be honest, I was even kind of surprised they didn't have Beckham take the penalty kick that Keane took for their third goal. But I feel that any fixing that may be going on in MLS is primarily done internally for its own purposes (increase club popularity, draw other big-name DPs to the league, increase league drama, etc.), aside from sports betting.
Which makes me wonder who the morons are placing the losing bets at these illegal betting houses. Presumably the same types who lose their week's salary trying to win at Three-Card Monty. ------RM
Has anyone been to a US sports book and bet on soccer games? Most of the new casinos springing up are in states that don't allow human sports betting (granted, NJ is trying to get it). I don't remember MLS games being on the board the last time I was in Vegas. Even if people wanted to, I don't think there's a betting infrastructure in place that would facilitate match fixing.
Matches that are fixed are wagered on in places where the games aren't taking places. They're done mostly over the internet and through illegal betting houses. Only a fool would be dumb enough to wager on the matches in the same place that he tried to fix them. (See: Wayne Rooney Sr.)
Interesting: MLS banning phones and social media from dressing rooms an hour before matches to combat match fixing. One wonders how much effect this truly has. Does a good fix require "real time" communication? ------RM
I like the end of the article where it basically says this is really just to combat instagram posts during games...lol
I could see MLS being a victim of this kind of match fixing, but I dont see it as being a prime target. This kind of thing is best done in leagues where there is a lot of instability. It makes law enforcement less likely, finances are more likely to be sketchier, and social norms and laws are likely to be less strongly rooted. Its much easier to sell a player on this sort of thing if they havent been paid in a month, they are well out of the media spotlight, and the come from a nation where accepting bribes is more common.
According to this author, soccer is f*cked. http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/8924593/match-fixing-soccer
Actually, important revision to that: most match fixing nowadays isn't about the general outcome of the game. It's on side bets, like whether there will be a penalty, whether there will be a red card, whether all 6 subs will be used, whether the underdog will score, etc. It's always puzzled me, since it seems that once this has happened a few times, only a sucker [or, I guess more to the point, a hardcore gambling addict] would take those kinds of side bets. But you know what Mencken said. Good point. If there hasn't been, or hasn't been much, match fixing, it's this last word that's the reason why. Christian Gomez was once asked what he thought about the paychecks in MLS and he said "I like them. They don't bounce." Nor would I, on an incidental basis, individual players making dumb fouls that 'don't affect the outcome' but cash in on the 'will there be a penalty' bet and the like, but I'm hopeful there's not much systematic going on here. And I'm at least encouraged that MLS didn't just say this is someone else's problem.
Question: Are taped phone conversations legal in the USA and if so, do leagues and/or officials ever listen to such conversations in the NBA, NFL, NHL or MLB as well as MLS? Serie A and B players have been caught because someone was actually listening to the phone conversations and using those tapes as evidence but I've never heard even of attempt of this type of in this country.
The legality of recording a phone conversation you're involved in varies from state to state. Some only allow recording of a call if both parties involved are aware of it, others allow it if only one side is aware. AFAIK, there is no legality to recording a phone call you are not a party to without a warrant.
Unlike Italy where I'm pretty sure you don't need warrants. At least they didn't need it when they busted fiorentina when I worked there...
But, Pete Rose reportedly never bet against the Reds, so, it was not like he was actually "fixing" games.
He didn't bet equally on every game, and didn't bet at all on some games, so it's reasonable to assume that the bets affected his managerial decisions.
I agree and I don't know him but he did seem to be a HUGE competitor so I like to think he was being honest about it never affecting his managerial decisions but it's also easy to see the other side of the coin.
In fact, recording a phone call you are not a party to without a warrant is a federal crime. See the federal wiretapping statute, 18 USC § 2511. Disclaimer: NEVER take legal advice from strangers on the internet (including me).
I was going to quote the exact same thing. Hopefully this guy was blowing sh*t to get a wow reaction from the reporter cuz if this is legitimate it will be catastrophic for NA soccer.