10 Jul 2024

Botswana Football Association (BFA) is not happy with the appeal committee ruling in a matter regarding match manipulation.

Addressing a press conference on Tuesday, BFA chief executive officer, Mfolo Mfolo said they were not happy with the ruling on the matter regarding a match between Kang United and Tsetseng United, which resulted with a scoreline of 16-0. 

The appeals committee had ruled that the evidence presented before them was not sufficient because it did not directly infer  Tsetseng United to have been involved.  

In that regard, Mfolo said they respected the decision of the appeal committee but were studying the judgment.  “Our only recourse now is to take the matter to Court of Arbitration for Sport because we cannot allow this kind of things to be happening in our football,” he said 

Mfolo said the results raised suspicion of match manipulation and that instituted an investigation on the matter. 

He said some of the findings were that Tsetseng United was competing for championship with Magosi Football Club and that during the last match of the league, the two teams were tied with 36 points each.

“Magosi had a superior goal difference 23 to 19 that being so, Magosi had scored 33 goals and conceded 10 goals. Tsetseng United had scored 25 goals and conceded six goals,” said Mfolo.  

To win the league, he said Magosi needed to win their game against Emajwe Rock Stars and Tsetseng United needed a big victory to overtake Magosi. In that regard, he said Magosi won their match 2-0 while Tsetseng humiliated Kang United 16-0.  “The two teams were then logged again at 39 points each, but Tsetseng won with a superior goal difference, therefore they were declared the winners of Kang Region Football Association,” he said.

Mfolo said that the summary of the findings were that in the first round, Tsetseng United won 1-0 against Kang United while the later were at position six of the log standing.

“And before that, Tsetseng United has never recorded a highest scoring of over five goals, and the highest score they have recorded in a single match was four goals,” he said.

Furthermore, Mfolo said their top goals scorer had managed to score seven goals in 15 matches, but it the final match he scored six goal.

“Tsetseng United alleges that in preparation for the match, they had engaged a high quality coach who polished attacking tactics, but as BFA we suspect match manipulation and we cannot allow that to happen in football, we will be setting a wrong precedent,” he said. ENDS