Match Fixing
Bruce Grobbelaar Scandal, English Football League First Division, (Premier League) 1994
Liverpool keeper Bruce Grobbelaar was caught on videotape discussing match-fixing with members of a known gambling syndicate. He, along with the Wimbledon goalkeeper Hans Segers and Aston Villa striker John Fashanu and a Malaysian businessman, were charged with conspiracy to corrupt. Specifically, he was accused of taking £40,000 to ensure that Liverpool lost to Newcastle, as well as trying, and failing, to lose a match between Liverpool and Manchester United (which ended in a 3-3 tie) that cost Grobbelaar £125,000. Grobbelaar’s defense was that he was simply gathering evidence to go to the police, and two separate trials resulted in hung-juries. Grobbelaar was ultimately cleared, but his reputation was so sullied that, when he sued the Sun for libel, the House of Lords ruled that he was not damaged by the allegations since there was enough evidence of wrongdoing on his part and was forced to pay for the Sun’s legal bills.
The Grobbelaar case showed that it was possible for one player to fix a game, flying in the face of the prevailing logic that it was impossible to fix a match unless many players were in on it. Grobbelaar was forced to declare bankruptcy in light of the Lords’ judgment. He continued to play up until 1999, but was never as good as he was during his Liverpool days. Despite his notoriety, he remains very popular at Anfield.