Dortmund's Poland international Piszczek banned in match-fixing probe - 7M sport

Dortmund's Poland international Piszczek banned in match-fixing probe



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Posted Thursday, September 22, 2011 by YAHOO Sport

Poland and Borussia Dortmund defender Lukasz Piszczek has received a one-year ban from Polish football, suspended for three years, over a 2006 match-fixing scandal at his former club, Zaglebie Lubin.

Poland's PZPN football association said on Wednesday that a disciplinary tribunal had overturned Piszczek's appeal against a banned imposed on July 29.

He was also ordered to pay a 150,000 zloty (34,000 euros, $47,000) charity donation to a Polish orphanage.

Piszczek, who joined German champions Dortmund last season, was caught up in a corruption case.

The investigation, targeting a dozen individuals, focused on a May 2006 top-flight match between Zaglebie and Krakow.

Zaglebie needed a draw to clinch a berth in UEFA Cup qualifying. The match ended 0-0, and Piszczek did not actually play.

The plot was allegedly hatched by two Krakow players and a dentist who acted as a go-between with members of Zaglebie's squad.

"In our view, borne out by the facts, his involvement in this case arose from a desire for gain," tribunal chairman Wlodzimierz Glowacki told Polish news agency PAP on Wednesday.

"But in mitigation, he reminded us he was young, did not play any organisational role and did not play in the match. He was open and honest about this, that he acted out of thoughtlessness and due to a high-pressure environment."

Piszczek left Zaglebie for Hertha Berlin in 2007.

He and a handful of other individuals have also faced legal action over the case.

Piszczek, who reportedly admitted his offence to prosecutors, received a one year sentence in June, suspended for three years. The potential penalty had ranged from a fine to up to two years behind bars.

Zaglebie Lubin have been hit by repeated scandals.

A year after winning the championship in 2007, they were relegated to the second division by the PZPN as punishment for match-fixing in the 2004-2005 season.

They managed to win promotion back to the top flight the following year, however.

They are not alone in having been probed by Polish anti-graft investigators over recent years, after repeated match-fixing scandals tarnished the image of the game.

Indictments have been issued in 15 other cases, with dozens of individuals prosecuted, and a handful of clubs from various divisions have been relegated as punishment.



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