Match fixers have not yet come to an agreement on how to rig the remaining matches in the Maltese Premier League.
Just like all other football leagues in Europe, the BOV Premier League and all lower divisions are currently suspended due to the Covid-19 pandemic, with six rounds of matches yet to be played and everything to play for.
“This is a very difficult time for us financially, since we can’t earn money from bribing players and referees to throw games,” one Sicilian match-fixer told Bis-Serjetà.
A 2017 study by players’ union Fifpro stated that the Maltese league is one of the most corruptible in the world, with one in six players being approached to fix matches.
“We have to come up with a solution that’s fair on the underground betting industry and upholds the lack of integrity of the sport,” he continued.
While the possibility of ending the 2019/20 season prematurely and declaring Floriana, the current league leaders, as champions has been mooted, underworld figures say this is not an ideal outcome.
“That doesn’t really work for us because they weren’t the team we had decided would be champions at the start of the season, another mafioso lamented.
“On the other hand, if the league continues and our bribed players come down with Covid-19, then we’ve wasted a ton of money. There really are no easy solutions,” he added.
“The match-fixing could continue behind closed doors. It’s not like anyone goes to matches anyway.”
Meanwhile, one Eastern European mobster who operates in Malta believes he has the answer.
“We stop football bets and bet on Charmaine Gauci’s press conferences instead. Number of new cases, number of stupid questions by journalists. Much more lucrative right now.”
