SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
The Badminton World Federation (BWF) has handed heavy penalties to eight Indonesian players as well as a Malaysian equipment supplier.
Of the eight players, three have received lifetime bans for betting, match fixing and match manipulation, whilst the remaining five have been given suspensions ranging from six to 12 years.
In addition to their suspensions, the five players also face fines of between $3000 and $12,000.
“Three of them were found to have coordinated and organised others into being complicit in the behaviour and have been suspended from all badminton related activities for life,” the BWF said in its official statement.
All eight players, who primarily competed in low level professional tournaments in Asia, had initially been suspended from playing competitively in January 2020 following reports from a whistleblower.
They have 21 days to appeal the decision in the country’s Court of Arbitration for Sport.
In addition to the players, a Malaysian equipment supplier involved in athlete sponsorship was also investigated and penalised.
He too has been banned for life on charges of offering money to professional international badminton players for the purposes of match fixing.
The Federation commented: “The BWF Integrity Unit had been investigating the individual for a number of years.
“Due to the nature of the breaches and this person’s access to and influence over players his company sponsored, the Independent Hearing Panel suspended the individual from badminton-related activities for life.”
