‘We’ll show you how to do it’: Secret recording catches suspected match-fixers red-handed

13 hours ago 1

Queensland Police have been handed a covert recording in which it is alleged a representative of a Chinese investment group asks a player at an NPL club to engage in match-fixing – and even provides instructions on how he could manipulate a game without being caught.

The audio file has been submitted to Football Australia, Football Queensland and the police as investigations continue into a suspected failed betting scheme at Gold Coast United, the former A-League club previously owned by billionaire Clive Palmer which now participates in the Queensland NPL, the state’s top men’s division.

Gold Coast United has been embroiled in a suspected betting scandal, involving a group of Chinese investors.

This masthead revealed last week that a match between third-placed Gold Coast United and second-placed rivals Moreton City Excelsior had been called off just hours before it was to begin, as football authorities learned of a suspected plot to lure players into a match-fixing operation.

Multiple sources with knowledge of what took place, who spoke to this masthead on the condition of anonymity because they did not have permission to speak on the record, say that the scheme was believed to have been hatched by representatives of a Chinese company who had agreed to take over the club, enhance player development pathways and provide the investment required for them to bid for a place in FA’s new national second-tier competition, the Australian Championship, which is launching later this year.

They are suspected to have approached one player about being involved earlier in the season – and that player not only blew the whistle, but secured vital evidence. This masthead has chosen not to name the player. No players or Gold Coast United officials are accused of wrongdoing, and no charges have been laid.

The player was offered money to manipulate the scoreline of a match, rather than the result.

Gold Coast United now play in the Queensland NPL.

The player, sources say, informed club leaders about the initial approach, but they did not pass on the information to authorities due to a lack of proof. Talk of match-fixing then went quiet.

The Chinese company later flagged their intention to move certain key players out of the club and bring in their own signings once the transfer window opened, which surprised the team given the importance of some of those players, and further raised the approached player’s suspicion that the representative he had spoken with would come back and try again.

The representative sought another meeting with the player about engaging in match-fixing for their match against Moreton City Excelsior on June 25, by which stage the new players would be available.

This time, the player secretly used his phone to record the conversation.

This masthead has not heard the recording, but sources say that the player was told how much he would be paid for taking part, and that the scheme would not be discussed prior to the match but rather that signals would be used during it to let him know when he had to act.

“We’ll show you how to do it,” the player was told, according to sources.

The player also took detailed notes about who he had met and where during this period, which has assisted police in their investigation.

Days later, before Gold Coast United’s match against Brisbane Olympic on June 22, the player told the rest of the team about what he had been asked to do, leaving some of them in tears. They played that match despite the emotional toll of the revelations, losing 2-1; the Moreton City Excelsior game was to take place three days later, but an announcement that it would be postponed was made at around 1pm on the day of the match on advice from Football Australia and Football Queensland, who by that stage had been fully informed.

Clive Palmer during his time with Gold Coast United.

FA subsequently passed on the information to the police and Sports Integrity Australia.

A spokesperson for SIA said it was a matter for Queensland Police. A spokesperson for Queensland Police confirmed initial inquiries were being made into a matter regarding a Gold Coast-based sports team after receiving initial information from a federal government agency.

Gold Coast United released a statement last week, acknowledging that investigations were ongoing, that the club was cooperating with authorities, and that it was unable to comment as a result.

“We understand there may be questions, and we are committed to providing clarity as soon as it is appropriate and permissable to do so,” the club statement said.

The pending takeover of the club by the Chinese company has since fallen through, and their representatives have not been sighted by players since, sources say.

Gold Coast United joined the A-League in 2009 and were bankrolled by Palmer but folded in 2012 after he was stripped of the club’s licence by Football Federation Australia. A separate ownership group then resurrected the club five years later, and the team resumed playing in 2018 as part of the Queensland NPL. Club leaders have since been searching for a way to bring United back to national competition.

Fraser Hills, a member of the current Gold Coast United squad, said the situation had “genuinely shaken our club”.

“We were told early on [in the season] new investors were coming in,” Hills said, speaking on his podcast B On The Ball.

“Big promises, big plans and with that came a shot of the new B-League [Australian Championship] set-up. They’ve been around for months, watching, learning and assessing.

“But then Friday happened: 13 boys told to leave the club, just like that. Gone. No sit-down, no clarity, just thanks and goodbye. And this wasn’t the fringe players, this was some of the best players in the league, boys who really wanted to play for the shirt.

“And then it got worse. The day of the game, the word spreads that one of our own has been approached to match-fix. He did the right thing, reported it, the club escalated it to Football Queensland and Football Australia and now there’s a full investigation underway.

“I won’t say more on that, we’ll let the process play out, but that week tore the heart out of the club. It was chaos, sadness and confusion.”