Rojugbokan Dolapo Alfred

IS FIXED- MATCHES MYTH OR REAL IN NIGERIA? The question "is fixed- matches real?" has lingered on the minds of Nigerians, who find it hard to rely on people or sites saying it is. Match-fixing has been around since the invention of the sport, but it is not easy or common to spot it as it might have been in the past. Match-fixing as the name implies refers to the process of intentionally losing a game, through players behaving abysmally on purpose or through corrupt officiating by the officials. It is a fixing of the final result of the game. They are also known as game fixing, race fixing or race manipulation, sports fixing, or hippodroming. They can also be defined as contests where the teams involved in the game are playing to a predetermined result or final score. There are various reasons why matches might be fixed, but almost all of them lead to Sports betting. If you take a quick search at the history of sports, you will find some very popular and controversial match-fixing scandals. Most recent is the Calciopoti in 2006, one of the darkest hours in the history of Italian football. ARE FIXING OF MATCHES ILLEGAL? Match-Fixing is very illegal, and they violate the rules of the sport and also of the competition itself. One of the biggest entertainment industries in the world is Sports and fixed matches usually play a role in keeping fans interested. Occasionally, referees or officials play a large role in match-fixing as they have the power to make certain calls to affect the outcome of a certain game. It is a very dangerous and risky business to be a member of, because there could be grave consequences if you get caught being part of the fix. The Sports betting world monitor games often to look out for suspicious activity. Although, there is no doubt that it still goes on in other parts of the world including Nigeria. Match-Fixing might seem like a very straightforward concept. But there are certain things you need to know before trying to get involved in the scheme. In 2013, Nigeria football witnessed match-fixing at the highest level when four National League, that is, the league in the second division, teams agreed to fix their matches. Plateau United and Police Machine were chasing a premier league ticket, and so fixed the matches with their respective opponents.Plateau United ended up winning Akurba 79-0 against Police Machine's 67-0 win over Babayaro FC to claim the ticket. There were eventually banned for ten years due to the shameful incidence. WHAT ARE THE REASONS BEHIND MATCH-FIXING? There are many reasons behind match- fixing, but the most common one is for gambling purposes or monetary gain by the parties involved. Betting sites love to make money and knowing the outcome of a certain match increases the odds that they are going to win the bet. It is very hard for the bookmakers to get an entire team to play along with their scheme. Most of the time, certain players, referees, or coaches are contacted. Individual parties are usually rewarded for helping to fix a match. They can be easily controlled by powerful players in the sports gambling world. Most of the time, fixed matches deal with the game of football as it is the easiest sport to manipulate. Another reason is 'tanking', which has been used to describe professional franchises that are losing games to improve their draft pick opportunity. Although, tanking is not as severe as what is going on in the soccer world, it could easily be classified as match-fixing. This type of scenario is not necessarily tied to the Sports betting world, however, bettors can take advantage of teams who would benefit from losing games. HOW LIKELY IS IT TO FIND TRUSTWORTHY INFORMATION ABOUT FIXED MATCHES. Now do fixed matches exist? With the above explanations, you can see that it truly does exist. Now can you find trustworthy information about it online? That is the problem. Over 80% of websites and individuals that claim to offer fixed games are fake. There are no speculations here, this is a fact. It is even more alarming that in Nigeria alone, that statistic climbs to 99%. It is not even a surprise since there are no agencies put in place to checkmate some of these things. These guys are just regular pundits that do some serious research, that is even if you are lucky enough to meet the few ones that analyze their games and give it to you. That's why they usually say to you, that when a game spoils, you would get another. That alone should tell you that what you would be getting is not as fixed as you were meant to believe. How can a supposedly 'sure game' fail? When they are involved in the match-fixing. What usually happens here is that the adjective FIXED is used to pre-sell their services. It is used to grab attention. Imagine what that word, FIXED does for them. It provides that psychological framework that proves the very high fee they charge for their games. They could charge 10,000 nairas or more and you will pay. Why will you pay? Not necessarily because you have the money but because you think the game has gotten some real prospects and is worthy to try. Scammers in Nigeria have taken their game to social media, and regular punters should be wary about them. They create a page on Facebook, run a little advertising winning just to get your attention. If the games fail, they delete it from their page, however, if it plays and luckily gets 3-4 successive wins. They would let the word out of a high odd guaranteed fixed match that just arrived and wouldn't be available for free. Next, you message them directly and they encourage you to make half-payment telling you to pay the balance after you win. Don't fall for that scheme because if you do, they would likely give out a Half-time/Full-time prediction. This is because it carries a relatively high odd; they proceed to divide their clients into groups giving each group different outcomes. In all groups, one group will eventually produce the winner and will be eager to pay more money while they take others as loss of promise to give them another free bet. Meanwhile, if the clients who lost makes an unhealthy comment on their page, they block them and also delete their comment. This is how these scammers work. ARE THERE LEGIT FIXED MATCHES? In summary, there are legit fixed matches but finding them can prove to be an uphill task. Be very careful about who or what you trust as fixed matches at very expensive and tipsters giving fixed matches for a ridiculous amount like 300,000 naira - 400,000 naira is most likely nothing more than a prediction.