Pure Sport Pure Football Pure Love

                                                           

( Mustafa Bayrak’ın Amerika’nın en büyük 4. Spor medyası olan Bleacher Report için kaleme aldığı makalenin orijinal versiyonudur)

When first football games played in Britian one hundred fifty years ago, it was pure football; no refree, no bad words, no racism, no match fixing.

Years passed, game improved, audience and money increased, so competition has become sky high. This brought some big challenges and problems to the game. Regulations got stricter and stricter, due to unwanted events (like holiganism) occured in the football.

Now, a lot of problems solved for our saucy football, but there is one thing waits for solution, no doubt, it is match fixing.

We saw some big examples on this topic. One of them is Marseille, in 1993  l'affaire VA-OM happened and Marseille President Bernard Tapie found guilty of match fixing against Valenciennes to guarantee that his club can rest first-team players ready for the upcoming Champions League final. Team relegated to the second division and pushed out of other year's UEFA and FIFA organizations.

In 2006 biggest match fixing scandal in football history occured in Italy. Juventus demoted to the Serie B with minus 17 points and Milan, Lazio and Fiorentina started the next season in Serie A with minus points.

These were only two sample match fixing events which is known by every football fan all over the world.

There have been thousands of times match fixing initiatives for sure. Some of them came true some of them not, but let's go to the biggest point of "match fixing."

We are all lovers of sport. Not important basketball, football or tennis, the  most important thing is competitive, challenging and entertaining games. Of course, everybody wants to win but it must be under rules. I don't think that a real sports fan would want an undeserved triumph even in a rivalry or a final game. 

My friends, you know the most responsible parties are always communities. If we do not take action into these cancer cells then it will cover every single part of our body.

I am Turkish and we also have the same problems, but it doesn't matter either a Turkish team involved or an American. My first duty is to tell the people the truth and show them what we can do.

"NBA Cares", "UEFA Respect", "Unicef", "FIFA Footbal for Hope" is just some perfect examples standing in front of us for good sports events organisations.

Please, do not let anyone make our games dirty.

Just close oyur eyes for one minute and think that your rights, position or money usurbed by someone.

How would be your reaction ?

Mustafa BAYRAK (Uluslararası spor analisti ve yazarı)