January 27 – Sevilla’s Kike Salas is awaiting a trial date having been formally charged at the end of last week by Spanish prosecutors over allegations of match-fixing.
A conviction by the Justice Court could mean a prison sentence ranging from six months to three years. RFEF sanctions, if guilty, stipulate a five-year ban from professional football and a fine of up to €30,000.
Salas was arrested and briefly held last Tuesday as part of an investigation into Salas and two other young men who were part of his circle. Salas is alleged to have deliberately earned yellow cards in matches last season to favour bets placed by relatives.
There are around 30 bets under suspicion with Salas receiving 10 yellow cards in the 2023-24 season, seven of those coming in the last nine La Liga games.
Authorities have said they have not ruled out the possibility of a larger match-fixing network.
A Sevilla statement said: “The club, following what happened today in relation to our player Kike Salas, would like to place on record our full respect for the judicial process as well as the presumption of innocence of our player.”
“The club would also like to state that we condemn any fraudulent activity in the world of sport and in particular those that may affect the integrity of the competition.”
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