The Dutch football association (KNVB) has confirmed for the first time that a match-fixer attempted to rig a game in the Eredivisie seven years ago.
The Royal Netherlands Football Association said on Monday that its integrity unit established that Willem II Tilburg midfielder Ibrahim Kargbo organised with Singaporean match-fixer Wilson Raj Perumal for Willem II to lose to FC Utrecht on Aug. 9, 2009.
The association's operational director, Gijs de Jong, said: "Dutch football is one of the last in Europe to lose its innocence in this matter.
"We have long warned this could happen in the Dutch league but it is still difficult to swallow now that this has been established. Hopefully it will add urgency in the Netherlands to the fight against this plague."
Official evidence of match-fixing in Dutch Eredivisie, revealed today by the Royal Netherlands Football Association. pic.twitter.com/exB13DY8dn
- Dutch Football (@dutchfootball) February 15, 2016
Investigators say emails between Kargbo and Perumal establish that Kargbo and two other Willem II players would each receive €25,000 ($28,000) if their team lost by more than two goals.
Utrecht won the match 1-0, but the KNVB statement added: "It has been established that they agreed on the outcome of the match."
Kargbo no longer plays in the Netherlands and could not immediately be reached for comment.