Authorities in the Czech Republic have launched a large-scale operation into football betting corruption, resulting in dozens of arrests. The Football Association of the Czech Republic (FAČR) initiated the investigation.
The High Public Prosecutor’s Office in the city of Olomouc confirmed that the police action relates to suspicions of corruption and fraudulent conduct connected to sports betting. The operation is preceded by a three-year investigation.
According to Olomouc’s Senior Prosecutor, Radim Dragoun, several dozen people have been detained and property searches have been conducted. Local media reports that the operation includes first-league and youth matches.
The National Centre Against Organised Crime (NCOZ) confirmed it is conducting criminal proceedings. Reportedly, Europol and Interpol are also involved.
Alongside the police investigation, the FAČR Ethics Committee has opened 47 proceedings into corruption in Czech football. These include first-league club Karviná and its players Samuel Šigut and Matěj Hýbl, whose activities have been suspended. In the second division, the Ethics Committee will investigate the role of Opava, its co-owner Martin Latka and three players.
Kamil Javůrek, FAČR integrity officer, stated: "FAČR is the initiator that alerted the police to the issue of match fixing. Our internal investigation was conducted in cooperation with UEFA and foreign colleagues.
"The investigation has been lengthy and successful from our perspective. It did not make sense to target a single suspicious match; it was necessary to act systematically to remove this conduct from Czech football."
FAČR President David Trunda believes the investigation will be a further step towards fully cleansing Czech football, which has faced several corruption scandals in the past.
Czech criminal law does not recognise match fixing as an independent criminal offence. Influencing sports competitions can be categorised under various general offences, especially fraud or bribery.
The Czech gambling industry saw its total turnover rise 8.8% year-on-year in 2025, reaching a record CZK 1.07 trillion ($52.10 billion)
