Match fixing or game fixing in organized sports occurs when a match is played to a completely or partially pre-determined result. Where the sporting competition in question is a race then the incident will be referred to as race fixing. Games that are deliberately lost are sometimes called thrown games. When a team intentionally loses a game to obtain a perceived future competitive advantage rather than gamblers being involved, the team is often said to have tanked the game instead of having thrown it.

Reasons

Match fixing is often motivated by agreements with gamblers. But even if there are no gamblers involved, sometimes a team may deliberately lose to gain some perceived future advantage. For example, in the NHL and NBA, teams near the bottom of the standings have sometimes been accused of throwing games at the end of the season to finish with the worst record in the league - thereby gaining the first draft pick. To deter this, these leagues now use a draft lottery which does not guarantee the first pick to the team at the bottom of the standings. Since the NFL does not make use of a lottery it makes it an easy target for match fixing, especially since top draft picks can have top careers. Like the NFL, MLB does not conduct a draft lottery, though it is very unlikely that an MLB team would tank a game for a draft pick because of the series of minor leagues that draft picks have to go through, and the fact that a first round draft pick may go their entire professional career without making a single major league plate appearance (or if a pitcher without making one major league pitch). Gambling has had many different meanings depending on the cultural and historical context in which it is used. ... NHL redirects here. ... The National Basketball Association of the United States and Canada, commonly known as the NBA, is the premier professional basketball league in North America. ... A (sports) draft is a process by which professional sports teams select players not contracted to any team, often from colleges or amateur ranks. ... Draft lottery could refer to: NBA Draft Lottery, a lottery determining the order in the NBA Draft Sports draft Draft lottery (1969) - the system whereby the United States conscripted soldiers during the Vietnam War. ... NFL logo For other uses of the abbreviation NFL, see NFL (disambiguation). ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

In the NBA (but not in the NHL), there have also been allegations of teams throwing games in order to finish in sixth rather than fifth place in the conference standings, thus enabling the team in question to evade a possible playoff match with the conference's top seed until the final round of playoffs in that conference (for more details see single-elimination tournament). For example, the 2006 Los Angeles Clippers allegedly threw late season games so they could finish with the 6th seed and play the 8th ranked team in the west, the Denver Nuggets, who were the 3rd seed by way of winning their division. If this was indeed their strategy, it worked, as the Clippers easily won the first round series. The National Basketball Association of the United States and Canada, commonly known as the NBA, is the premier professional basketball league in North America. ... NHL redirects here. ... A single-elimination tournament, also called a knockout or sudden death tournament, is a type of tournament where the loser of each match is immediately eliminated from winning the championship or first prize in the event. ... The Los Angeles Clippers are a professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. ... The Denver Nuggets are a professional basketball team based in Denver, Colorado. ...

In the past, some NFL teams have been accused of throwing games in order to obtain a more favourable schedule the following season; this was especially true between 1977 and 1993, when a team finishing last in a five-team division would get to play five of its eight non-division matches the next season against other last-place teams. On occasion, an NFL team has also been accused of throwing its final regular-season game in an attempt to "choose" its possible opponent in the subsequent playoffs; perhaps the most notable example of this was when the San Francisco 49ers, who had clinched a playoff berth, lost their regular-season finale in 1988 to the Los Angeles Rams, thereby keeping the New York Giants (who had defeated the 49ers in the playoffs in both 1985 and 1986, also injuring 49er quarterback Joe Montana in the latter year's game) from qualifying for the postseason; after the game, Giants quarterback Phil Simms angrily accused the 49ers of "laying down like dogs." NFL logo For other uses of the abbreviation NFL, see NFL (disambiguation). ... For the album by Ash, see 1977 (album). ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... City San Francisco, California Other nicknames Niners Team colors Cardinal Red, Metallic Gold and Black Head Coach Mike Nolan Owner Denise DeBartolo York and John York General manager none Mascot Sourdough Sam League/Conference affiliations All-America Football Conference (1946-1949) Western Division (1946-1948) National Football League (1950–present... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... City St. ... City East Rutherford, New Jersey Other nicknames Big Blue Wrecking Crew, Big Blue, G-Men, the Giants, The New York Football Giants Team colors Royal Blue, Red, Gray, and White Head Coach Tom Coughlin Owner The Mara and Tisch Families General manager Ernie Accorsi League/Conference affiliations National Football League... 1985 (MCMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Joseph Clifford Montana, Jr. ... Phillip Martin Simms (born November 3, 1955, in Lebanon, Kentucky) is a former quarterback for the New York Giants of the National Football League and currently a television sportscaster for the CBS network. ...

Thrown games, when motivated by gambling, require contacts (and normally money transfers) between gamblers, players, team officials, and/or referees. These contacts and transfer can sometimes be found, and lead to prosecution, by law or by the sports league(s). In contrast, tanking is internal to the team and very hard to prove. Often, substitutions made by the coach designed to deliberately increase the team's chances of losing (frequently by having one or more key players sit out, often using minimal or phantom injuries as a public excuse for doing this), rather than ordering the players actually on the field to intentionally underperform, were cited as the main factor in cases where tanking has been alleged.

A more recent example of possible tanking came in the ice hockey competition at the 2006 Winter Olympics. In Pool B, Sweden was to face Slovakia in the last pool match for both teams. Sweden coach Bengt-Åke Gustafsson publicly contemplated tanking against Slovakia, knowing that if his team won, they would have to face either Canada or the Czech Republic in the quarterfinals; he would tell Swedish television "One is cholera, the other the plague." Sweden lost the match 3-0; the most obvious sign of tanking was when Sweden had a five-on-three power play with five NHL stars—Peter Forsberg, Mats Sundin, Daniel Alfredsson, Nicklas Lidström, and Fredrik Modin—on the ice, and failed to put a shot on goal. If he was seeking to tank, Alfredsson got his wish; Sweden would face a much less formidable quarterfinal opponent in Switzerland. Canada would lose to Russia in a quarterfinal in the opposite bracket, while Sweden went on to win the gold medal, defeating the Czechs in the semifinals. Ice hockey at the 2006 Winter Olympics was held at the Torino Palasport Olimpico and the Torino Esposizioni in Turin, Italy. ... Neve and Gliz, the 2006 Olympics mascots, on display in Turin The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XX Olympic Winter Games, were celebrated in Turin, Italy from February 10, 2006, through February 26, 2006. ... Bengt-Ã…ke Gustafsson, born March 23, 1958 in Karlskoga, Sweden. ... Cholera (also called Asiatic cholera) is a water-borne disease caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae, which is typically ingested by drinking contaminated water, or by eating improperly cooked fish, especially shellfish. ... Bubonic plague is the best-known variant of the deadly infectious disease plague, which is caused by the enterobacteria Yersinia pestis. ... Power play is a sporting term used in various games. ... NHL redirects here. ... (born July 20, 1973 in Örnsköldsvik, Västernorrlands län, Sweden) is a professional ice hockey player from Sweden. ... Mats Johan Sundin (Born - February 13, 1971, Bromma, Sweden) is a centre for the Toronto Maple Leafs in the National Hockey League. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Nicklas Erik Lidström (born April 28, 1970, in VästerÃ¥s, Västmanlands län, Sweden) is a Swedish professional ice hockey defenseman in the National Hockey League playing for the Detroit Red Wings. ... Fredrik Modin (born October 8, 1974 in Sundsvall, Sweden) is a Swedish ice hockey left winger. ...

In addition to the match fixing that is committed by players, coaches and/or team officials, it is not unheard of to have results manipulated by corrupt referees. In 2004 a scandal erupted in Germany concerning soccer-referees who fixed matches for gamblers. A referee is a person who has authority to make decisions about play in many sports. ...

Match fixing does not necessarily involve deliberately losing a match. Occasionally, teams have been accused of deliberately playing to a draw (or a fixed score) where this ensures some mutual benefit (e.g. both teams advancing to the next stage of a competition.) For example, in the 1982 FIFA World Cup, West Germany played Austria in the last match of group B. A West German victory by 1 or 2 goals would result in both teams advancing; any less and Germany was out; any more and Austria was out (and replaced by Algeria, who had just beaten West Germany). West Germany attacked hard and scored after 10 minutes. Afterwards, the players then preceded to just kick the ball around aimlessly for the remainder of the match. Algerian supporters were so angered that they waved banknotes at the players, while a German fan burned his German flag in disgust. As a result, FIFA changed its tournament scheduling for subsequent World Cups so that the final pair of matches in each four team group are played simultaneously. Qualifying countries The 1982 Football World Cup was held in Spain by decision of FIFA in July 1966, in the same session where FIFA gave the right to host the 1974 and 1978 tournaments to, respectively, West Germany and Argentina. ... The Fédération Internationale de Football Association, known worldwide by its acronym FIFA, is the international governing body of Football (soccer) and the largest sporting organization in the world. ... The FIFA World Cup Trophy, which has been awarded to the world champions since 1974. ...

A more recent and similar example of alleged match fixing in soccer occurred in the 2004 European Football Championship. Because unlike FIFA, UEFA takes "head-to-head" play into consideration before overall goal difference when ranking teams level on points, a situation arose in Group C where Sweden and Denmark played to a 2-2 draw, which was a sufficiently high scoreline to eliminate Italy (which had lower-scoring draws with the Swedes and Danes) regardless of Italy's result with already-eliminated Bulgaria. Although Italy beat Bulgaria by only one goal and would hypothetically have been eliminated using the FIFA tie-breaker too, some Italian fans bitterly contended that the FIFA tie-breaker would have motivated their team to play harder and deterred their Scandinavian rivals from, in their view, at the very least half-heartedly playing out the match after the score became 2-2. This led to calls for UEFA to adopt FIFA's tiebreaking formula for future tournaments. Football is a ball game played between two teams of eleven players, each attempting to win by scoring more goals than their opponent. ... Euro 2004 Logo The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly called Euro 2004, was held in Portugal between 12 June and 4 July 2004. ... The Fédération Internationale de Football Association, known worldwide by its acronym FIFA, is the international governing body of Football (soccer) and the largest sporting organization in the world. ... UEFA logo The Union of European Football Associations, almost always referred to by the acronym UEFA (pronounced (you-AY-fuh) or (oo-Ay-fuh) or ), is the administrative and controlling body for European football. ... In sports such as ice hockey and soccer, goal difference (that is, goals scored less goals conceded) is often the first tie-breaker used to rank teams which finish a competition with an equal number of points. ... Scandinavia is a region in Northern Europe. ...

There have also been incidents (especially in basketball) where players on a favored team have won the game but deliberately ensured the quoted point spread was not covered (see point shaving). Likewise, there are cases where a team not only lost (which might be honest) but lost by some large amount, enough to grant a favor to the victor. Perhaps the most famous example was Argentina vs Peru in the 1978 FIFA World Cup. Argentina needed a four goal victory to advance over Brazil, an almost unheard-of margin at this level of competition, especially since Argentina had a weak offense (6 goals in 5 games) and Peru a stout defence (allowing only 6 goals in 5 games). Yet somehow Argentina won 6-0. Much was made over the fact that the Peruvian goalkeeper was born in Argentina, and Peru was dependent on Argentinian grain shipments, but nothing was ever proven. Sara Giauro shoots a three-point shot, FIBA Europe Cup for Women Finals 2005. ... Spread betting is a form of gambling on the outcome of any event where the more accurate the gamble, the more is won and conversely the less accurate the more is lost. ... Point shaving, in organized sports, is a type of match fixing where the perpetrators try to prevent a team from covering a published point spread. ... Qualifying countries The 1978 Football World Cup was held in Argentina between June 1 and 25, 1978. ...

History

Since gambling pre-dates recorded history it comes as little surprise that evidence of match fixing is found throughout recorded history. The Ancient Olympics were almost constantly dealing with allegations of athletes accepting bribes to lose a competition and city-states which often tried to manipulate the outcome with large amounts of money. These activities went on despite the oath each athlete took to protect the integrity of the events and the severe punishment sometimes inflicted on those who were caught. Chariot racing was also dogged by race fixing throughout its history. Ruins of the training grounds at Olympia The Ancient Olympic Games were an athletic and religious celebration held in the Greek town of Olympia from (historically) as early as 776 BC to 393. ... Look up Athlete in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Bribery is a crime implying a sum or gift given alters the behaviour of the person in ways not consistent with the duties of that person. ... A city-state is a region controlled exclusively by a city. ... An oath (from Old Saxon eoth) is either a promise or a statement of fact calling upon something or someone that the oath maker considers sacred, usually a god, as a witness to the binding nature of the promise or the truth of the statement of fact. ... Chariot racing was one of the most popular ancient Greek and Roman sports. ...

By the end of the 19th century gambling was illegal in most jurisdictions, but that did not stop its widepread practice. Boxing soon became rife with fighters "taking a dive" - probably because boxing is an individual sport which makes its matches much easier to fix without getting caught. Baseball also became plagued by match fixing despite efforts by the National League to stop gambling at its games. Matters finally came to a head in 1919 when eight members of the Chicago White Sox threw the World Series (see Black Sox Scandal). In an effort to restore confidence, Major League Baseball established the office of the Baseball Commissioner, and one of Kenesaw Mountain Landis's first acts was to ban all involved players for life. Strict rules prohibiting gambling persist to this day (See Pete Rose). Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century &#8212; 19th century &#8212; 20th century &#8212; more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... Professional boxing bout featuring Ricardo Domínguez (left) versus Rafael Ortíz Boxing, also called Western Boxing, prizefighting (when referring to professional boxing) or the sweet science (a common nickname among fans), is a sport and martial art in which two participants of similar weight fight each other with their... A view of the playing field at Busch Stadium II St. ... The National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs, or simply the National League, is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. ... 1919 (MCMXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Major league affiliations American League (1901–present) Central Division (1994–present) Current uniform Retired Numbers 2,3,4,9,11,16,19,35,72 Name Chicago White Sox (1904–present) White Stockings <no city in official name, but based in Chicago> (1901-1903) Ballpark U.S. Cellular Field (1991–present... For other events named World Series, see World Series (disambiguation). ... 1919 Chicago White Sox team photo The Black Sox Scandal refers to a number of events that took place around and during the play of the 1919 World Series. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... In 1920, the owners of Major League Baseball, in order to reestablish confidence of fans in the sport following the Black Sox Scandal, established the office of Commissioner of Baseball. ... Kenesaw Mountain Landis Kenesaw Mountain Landis (20 November 1866 – 25 November 1944) was an American jurist who served as a federal judge from 1905 to 1922, and subsequently as the first commissioner of Major League Baseball. ... Peter Edward Pete Rose, Sr. ...

Match fixing and gambling today

Influenced by baseball's experiences, the NFL and NBA have followed MLB's lead and adopted a hard line against gambling on its games, especially by those directly involved in the league. The NCAA goes as far as to prohibit its athletes and coaches from gambling on any sport in which the NCAA holds a championship, and prohibits venues in championship play to carry advertising for any form of gambling, including state lotteries. Each of these organizations was, and may still be influenced by fears that their games could come under the influence of gamblers in the absence of these tough measures. NFL logo For other uses of the abbreviation NFL, see NFL (disambiguation). ... The National Basketball Association of the United States and Canada, commonly known as the NBA, is the premier professional basketball league in North America. ... The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA, often pronounced N-C-Double-A or N-C-Two-A) is a voluntary association of about 1200 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletics programs of many colleges and universities in the United States. ...

In Britain the authorities in both government and sport have taken a softer line on gambling. Sports betting was legalized in the 1960s and organizations such as The Football Association seem to have taken the stance that gambling on their events is inevitable - unlike the American leagues, The FA only prohibits betting on a match by those directly involved in the game in question. In 1964 in the great British football betting scandal of the 1960s was uncovered. A betting ring orginised by Jimmy Gauld and involving several Football League players had been fixing matches. The most famous incident involved three Sheffield Wednesday players, including two England international players, that were subsequently banned from football for life and imprisoned after it was discovered they had bet against their team winning in a match against Ipswich Town. 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ... The Football Association (The FA) is the governing body of football in England (and the Crown dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man). ... The British betting scandal of 1964 was a scandal in English association football in which eight professional players were gaoled for offences arising from match fixing. ... Jimmy Gauld (born 9 May 1931) is a former Scotish footballer who became notorious for being convicted of instigating the British betting scandal of 1964. ... Sheffield Wednesday Football Club (often abbreviated as SWFC), nicknamed The Owls, is one of the oldest football clubs in the English Football League. ... Ipswich Town Football Club is the professional football club of Ipswich, Suffolk, England. ...

The integrity of horse racing remains an ongoing concern since gambling is an integral part of this sport. Recent allegations of race fixing have centered around the recently-formed betting exchanges which unlike traditional bookmakers allow punters to lay an outcome (that is, to bet against a particular runner). Leading exchange Betfair has responded to the allegations by signing Memorandums of Understanding with the Jockey Club, The FA, the International Cricket Council, the Association of Tennis Professionals and other sporting authorities. These MOUs are evidence of the vast difference between British and American attitudes - as of 2004 it would be almost unthinkable for an American sports league to sign such an agreement with a bookmaker or betting exchange. A bet exchange or p2p gambling web site is a fairly recent Internet phenomenon, and is used to describe a web site acting as a broker between parties for the placement of bets (gambling, in other words). ... A bookmaker, bookie or turf accountant, is an organisation or a person that takes bets and may pay winnings depending upon results and, depending on the nature of the bet, the odds. ... Betfair Logo Betfair is the worlds largest Internet betting exchange. ... The Jockey Club is responsible for the day-to-day regulation of United Kingdom horse-racing. ... ICC logo The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the governing body for international Test match and One-day International cricket. ... The Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) was formed in 1972 to protect the interests of male professional Tennis players. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

It should be noted that while British football has never been rocked by match fixing allegations on the scale of the Black Sox scandal, cricket has been scandalized by gambling and match fixing in soccer has become a serious problem in parts of Continental Europe. Football (soccer) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... 1919 Chicago White Sox team photo The Black Sox Scandal refers to a number of events that took place around and during the play of the 1919 World Series. ... For the insect, see Cricket (insect). ... Football (soccer) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Continental Europe, also referred to as mainland Europe or simply the Continent, is the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands and peninsulae. ...

The high salaries of some of today's professional athletes likely serves to insulate their leagues from player-instigated match fixing. In the NCAA and in leagues where the salaries are comparatively less (or, in the case of the amateur NCAA, zero), match fixing by players remains a serious concern. Professional sports are sports in which the participants receive payment for playing, as opposed to amateur sports where they are not. ... The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA, often pronounced N-C-Double-A or N-C-Two-A) is a voluntary association of about 1200 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletics programs of many colleges and universities in the United States. ...

Recent incidents

• In February 1999 a Malaysian-based betting syndicate was caught attempting to install a remote-control device to sabotage the floodlights at English Premier League team Charlton Athletic's ground with the aid of a corrupt security officer. If the match had been abandoned after half-time, then the result and bets would have stood. Subsequent investigations showed that the gang had been responsible for previously unsuspected "floodlight failures" at West Ham's ground in November 1997, and again a month later at Crystal Palace's ground during a home match of Palace's groundsharing tenant Wimbledon. [1], [2]

• In 2000 the Delhi police intercepted a conversation between a blacklisted bookie and the South African cricket captain Hansie Cronje in which they learnt that Cronje accepted money to throw matches. The South African government refused to allow any of its players to face the Indian investigation unit, which opened up a can of worms. A court of inquiry was set up and Cronje admitted to throwing matches. He was immediately banned from all cricket. He also named Salim Malik (Pakistan), Mohammed Azharuddin and Ajay Jadeja (India). They too were banned from all cricket. As a kingpin, Cronje exposed the dark side of betting, however with his untimely death in 2002 most of his sources also have escaped law enforcement agencies. Two South African cricketers, Herschelle Gibbs and Nicky Boje, are also wanted by the Delhi police for their role in the match fixing saga. A few years before in 1998, Australian legends Mark Waugh and Shane Warne were fined for revealing information about the 'weather' to bookmakers.

• In June 2004 in South Africa, thirty-three people (including nineteen referees, club officials, a match commissioner and an official of the South African Football Association) were arrested on match-fixing charges.

• In the summer of 2004, Betfair provided evidence of race fixing to City of London Police that led to the arrest of jockey Kieren Fallon and fifteen others on race fixing charges. As of this writing, Fallon's case remains before the courts.

• Bundesliga scandal of 2005: In January 2005, the German Football Association (DFB) and German prosecutors launched separate probes into charges that referee Robert Hoyzer bet on and fixed several matches that he worked, including a German Cup tie. Hoyzer later admitted to the allegations; it has been reported that he was involved with Croat gambling syndicates. He also implicated other referees and players in the match fixing scheme. The first arrests in the Hoyzer investigation were made on January 28 in Berlin, and Hoyzer himself was arrested on February 12 after new evidence apparently emerged to suggest that he had been involved in fixing more matches than he had admitted to. Hoyzer has been banned for life from football by the DFB. On March 10, a second referee, Dominik Marks, was arrested after being implicated in the scheme by Hoyzer. Still later (March 24), it was reported that Hoyzer had told investigators that the gambling ring he was involved with had access to UEFA's referee assignments for international matches and Champions League and UEFA Cup fixtures several days before UEFA publicly announced them. Ultimately, Hoyzer was sentenced to serve 2 years and 5 months in prison.

• In July 2005, Italian Serie B champions Genoa was arbitrarily placed last in the division, and therefore condemned to relegation in Serie C1, after it was revealed that they bribed their opponents in the final match of the season, Venezia to throw the match. Genoa won the match 3-2 and had apparently secured promotion to Serie A.

• Brazilian football match-fixing scandal: In September 2005, a Brazilian magazine revealed that two football referees, Edílson Pereira de Carvalho (a member of FIFA's referee staff) and Paulo José Danelon, had accepted bribes to fix matches. Soon afterwards, sport authorities ordered the replaying of 11 matches in the country's top competition, the Campeonato Brasileiro, that had been worked by Edílson. Edílson has been banned for life from football; Danelon has been removed from his refereeing duties and is likely to face a long ban, if not a lifetime one. Both face possible criminal charges. Brazilian supporters have taken to shout "Edílson" at a referee who they consider to have made a bad call against their team, in a reference to the scandal.

• 2006 Serie A scandal: In May 2006, perhaps the largest match fixing scandal in the history of Italian Serie A football was uncovered by Italian Police, implicating league champions Juventus, and powerhouses AC Milan, Fiorentina, and Lazio. Teams have been suspected of rigging games by selecting favorable referees, and even superstar Italian World Cup team goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon has been charged with betting on soccer games. [3] Initially, Juventus were stripped of their titles in 2004-05 and 2005-06, all four clubs were barred from European club competition in 2006-07, and all except Milan were forcibly relegated to Serie B.^[1] After all four clubs appealed, only Juventus remained relegated, and Milan were allowed to enter the third qualifying round of the Champions League. The stripping of Juventus' titles stood.^[2]

The FA Premier League (often referred to as the Barclays Premiership in the UK and the Barclays English Premier League internationally) is a league competition for football clubs located at the top of the English football league system (above The Football League), making it Englands primary football competition. ... Charlton Athletic Football Club (AIM: CLO) are a football club from southeast London. ... West Ham United F.C. are a football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London and play their home matches at The Boleyn Ground. ... The Boleyn Ground is the official name of the football stadium of West Ham United F.C.; however, it is much more often called Upton Park after the area of London in which it is located. ... Crystal Palace Football Club is a professional football team based in South Norwood in south-east London and playing in the Coca-Cola Football League Championship, the second level of English football. ... Selhurst Park is a football stadium in south London, and is the current home ground of Crystal Palace F.C. Its present capacity is 26, 247. ... Wimbledon F.C. crest Wimbledon F.C. was the name of a now defunct football club that played in south London. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... This article is about the metropolis of Delhi. ... For the insect, see Cricket (insect). ... Wessel Johannes Hansie Cronje (September 25, 1969 - June 1, 2002) was a South African cricketer (all-rounder) and captain of the South African national cricket team in the 1990s. ... Salim Malik (born April 16, 1963) is a former Pakistani cricketer, who is now banned from cricket because of his involvement in betting and match-fixing. ... Mohammed Azharuddin. ... Ajay Singh Jadeja was born on February 1, 1971 in Jamnagar. ... Herschelle Herman Gibbs (born 23 February 1974 in Cape Town) is a South African cricketer, more specifically a batsman. ... Nicky Boje (b. ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... Mark Edward Waugh AM (born June 2, 1965 in Sydney) is a well-loved Australian cricketer. ... Shane Keith Warne (born September 13, 1969 in Ferntree Gully, Victoria, Australia), is an Australian cricketer, and captain of Hampshire. ... See also: 2003 in sports, other events of 2004, 2005 in sports, list of years in sports. // Events On January 28, International Olympic Committee Vice-President Kim Un-yong is arrested on charges of corruption in Seoul. ... A referee presides over a game of association football (soccer). ... The South African Football Association or SAFA is the governing body of football (soccer) in South Africa. ... For other senses of this word, see Summer (disambiguation). ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 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Robert Hoyzer (born August 28, 1979 in Berlin, Germany) is a former football referee who scandalized German football by fixing matches. ... The German Cup trophy The German Cup (official German name: DFB-Pokal, after Deutscher Fußball Bund Pokal or German Football Association Cup) is an elimination football (soccer) tournament held annually. ... Motto: none Historical (Latin): Antemurale Christianitatis English: Fore-wall of Christianity Anthem(s): Lijepa naÅ¡a domovino Our beautiful homeland Capital Zagreb Largest city Zagreb Official language(s) Croatian1 Government Republic  - President Stipe Mesić  - Prime minister Ivo Sanader Independence    - From SFR Yugoslavia June 25, 1991   - Medieval kingdom 925   - Medieval duchy... Berlin is the capital city and a state of Germany. ... February 12 is the 43rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... March 10 is the 69th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (70th in leap years). ... March 24 is the 83rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (84th in leap years). ... UEFA logo The Union of European Football Associations, almost always referred to by the acronym UEFA (pronounced (you-AY-fuh) or (oo-Ay-fuh) or ), is the administrative and controlling body for European football. ... The UEFA Champions League (which used to be named and is often still called European Cup) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for the most successful football clubs in Europe. ... The UEFA Cup is a football competition for European club teams, organized by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). ... Serie B is the name of the second highest football league in Italy. ... Genoa Cricket and Football Club is a football club based in Genoa, Italy. ... Serie C is the name of the third and fourth highest football leagues in Italy. ... A.C. Venezia is an Italian football club based in Venice. ... Serie A is the top division of the Italian Football League, the highest football league in Italy. ... Máfia do Apito (literally meaning Whistles Mafia), sometimes called Escândalo do Apito (meaning Whistles Scandal), was the name given by the Brazilian press to the football match-fixing scandal denounced by Veja magazine on September 23, 2005. ... Edílson Pereira de Carvalho (born August 4, 1962 in Brazil) is a former international football referee. ... The Fédération Internationale de Football Association, known worldwide by its acronym FIFA, is the international governing body of Football (soccer) and the largest sporting organization in the world. ... The Série A is the main division of Brazilian football. ... The Serie A scandal involves major match fixing in Italys top professional Football league, Serie A. The scandal was uncovered in May 2006 by Italian police, implicating league champions Juventus, and powerhouses A.C. Milan, Fiorentina, and Lazio. ... Juventus Football Club, also known as Juventus Turin (or Juventus Torino), Juventus FC, or simply Juve (Latin word for Youth, pronounced ), together with Torino F.C. 1906, are the main clubs from Turin, Italy. ... Associazione Calcio Milan is an Italian football club based in Milan, they play in red and black stripes, giving them the nickname Rossoneri (red-blacks). One of the most successful clubs in the world, they have won the prestigious UEFA Champions League six times (second only to Real Madrid), the... ACF Fiorentina is an Italian football club based in Florence (Firenze), Tuscany. ... S.S. Lazio (Italian: Società Sportiva Lazio SpA) is an Italian sports club based in Rome, Latium. ... Gianluigi Gigi Buffon (born January 28, 1978) is an Italian FIFA World Cup-winning goalkeeper, who is widely considered the best in the current game. ... UEFA logo The Union of European Football Associations, almost always referred to by the acronym UEFA (pronounced (you-AY-fuh) or (oo-Ay-fuh) or ), is the administrative and controlling body for European football. ... Serie B is the name of the second highest football league in Italy. ... The UEFA Champions League 2006-07 is the 52nd edition of the European championship football club tournament and 15th edition under the current UEFA Champions League format. ...

Outside of sports

• The 1980s TV game show Starcade had a policy of matching contestants up based on their gaming abilities, which means that after potential contestants had played a number of video games for a certain amount of time, they would be paired up by their total scores. Although it was written in the rules that intentionally doing badly in order to be paired up to someone who really wasn't that good was grounds for disqualification, many contestants did it anyways, and were stripped of any awarded prizes and disqualified.

A game show involves members of the public or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, playing a game, perhaps involving answering quiz questions, for points or prizes. ... This page is about the television game show. ...

References

1. ^ "Italian trio relegated to Serie B", BBC, 2006-07-14. Retrieved on 2006-08-03.
2. ^ "Punishments cut for Italian clubs", BBC, 2006-07-25. Retrieved on 2006-08-03.