NEW DELHI: Several players of India’s I-League clubs have been approached to fix matches this season, the country’s football federation said on Thursday.

“We have received information of multiple approaches to our players,” All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Kalyan Chaubey said in a statement. “We will thoroughly examine the incidents, investigate, and take all necessary action.”

The federation did not name players or clubs who had been approached to “manipulate matches” in the country’s second tier competition featuring 13 clubs.

Chaubey said the federation would further strengthen its system to counter such threats and educate players and officials on how to recognise such corrupt practices and report them.

The AIFF set up its anti-corruption unit a decade ago after a Malaysian betting syndicate approached Indian players to fix I-League matches.

It integrity officer Javed Siraj did not take calls by Reuters seeking details but a senior AIFF official, on condition of anonymity, called it a “concern”.

“A few players reported similar approaches and results of a couple of matches raised our doubts,” the official said.

“A clearer picture would emerge only after the investigation ends.”

In 2018, an I-League club reported to the AIFF that several of their players had been approached via social media to fix matches.

Published in Dawn, December 1st, 2023