Sam Sodje an ex-Premier League footballer faces arrest after he was filmed bragging that he can arrange for professional footballers to get yellow cards or even sent off in return for cash.
Sam who played for Portsmouth and also in the top flight at Reading, says he can guarantee certain events in play in return for money.
In the video, 34-year-old Nigerian defender Sodje brags that he can arrange for a player to get themselves booked for a £30,000 pay-out.
Fraudsters can capitalise on this through in-game betting, where they put large bets on incidents like red and yellow cards, penalties and even corner kicks.
In the video recorded by an undercover reporter from the Sun on Sunday, Sodje claims he fixed it for an ex-Premier League player, who now plays in the Championship, to get a yellow card and can even organise similar such events in Premier League games - for a much greater price because of the huge fines for players at that level.
He even boasted he can get arrange for African players to influence what happens in World Cup games, claiming some players could be easily tempted to fix because they do not get paid as much to represent their national teams.
He added that it was child's play for a player to get a yellow card, as they are so common no one suspects anything is amiss and the player can continue playing afterwards.
He said: 'This guy came to meet me at my house and it was sorted. That's how easy it is - it's nothing.'
Sodje and his brother Stephen claim they can even get players sent off - an event which can cripple a team's chances in a game - for between £50,000 and £70,000.
He even said he could set up a bet an entire week before a game, while his warned the reporter not to pay one player rumoured to be involved in fixing matches because the sportsman was already under scrutiny.
Sodje spoke of a meeting a Premiership player in a Manchester hotel room, as well as at the home of another to discuss a potential fix.
The footage also shows him admitting punching an opponent in the groin to get sent off for a £70,000 pay-out.
While playing for Portsmouth, Sodje punched Oldham Athletic's Jose Baxter twice in the game, which took place in February.
Sodje also boasted that having pocketed £70,000 from the gambling ring, even after his £10,000 fine he was still £60,000 better off.
He said: 'Do you know how much I got fined? I got fined ten grand and I missed six games.'
He said he had to launch the bizarre attack, which his then-manager at Portsmouth, Guy Whittingham, described as 'inexcusable', as the referee had not been booking him for tacking.
Spotting his chance after a tackle by Baxter, Sodje ran up to his opponent and punched him in the crotch - to the shock of spectators.
Sodje also claimed that another of his brother's Akpo, 33, who plays for Tranmere Rovers in League One, would get booked in each of his next six games in exchange for cash.
He said that the brothers were trying to prepare for a life after football.
The National Crime Agency (NCA) confirmed it was investigating the claims. culled
*OMG another Nigerian in the news for negative news! *sigh*
Asin ehn....jst too bad :(
ReplyDeleteStella this story is as fake as Kimks bum. Pls always try to investigate before u jump into conclusion. The Sodje brodas ve been doing great tinz in the UK they dnt deserve this.
DeleteWatch bbc last night, i was so embarrased . My friends were like nikki ur country people again. Y do Nigerians embarras us all over the world. This greedy attitude is getting out of hands.
DeleteIf this is true, then the guy have diarrhea mouth. Abeg he too talk.
DeleteOlodo, u dat said the story is fake. The guy was filmed confessing it all and was aired on so many international tv stations. don't come here and start forming I TOO KNOW.Mtcheeeew!
DeleteAll I see is a brother that was betrayed by his most trusted friends! Whoever that video and leaked it the tape is a devil's incarnate.
ReplyDeleteWhat do u mean by that? This guy has been a cheat and u called the person that exposed him a devil. U mean u support his match fixing.
DeleteThis dude called ifeanyi is a typical evidence of onitsha main market trader, u r sensible but I vnt read any of ur sensibility channeled toward anytn moral. Its either u r supporting gay, bribe, fucking inside night bus or any other immoral act. Be reasonable for once dear n act mature.
DeleteI will think about it! But for fact you think that a typical onitsha main market traders are not logically reasonable makes you even more fool than you may consider me to be.
DeleteThe news in question lacks evidence(the video ) to support their claims and to ascertain that our brother was not misqouted. Why didn't them make the video public? Or are they hiding something? They may have succeeded in turning you against your brother but they can't succeed with me. Until I see the said video every other thing is balderdash. Lobish!
Wat a shame.
ReplyDeleteNa wa o...'Oral Diarrhoea' *smh*
ReplyDeleteSad.
ReplyDeleteIgbo Kwenu! Am not surprised, cos an igbo man will do anything for money. Imagine punching a player on his balls so he (Sodje)could be sent off and make his team lose or make someone win an earlier bet that he (Sodje) would be sent off, all for £70,000 cash in return . It's so so sad. Does he know the number of people that would be affected by this his match fixing? Guess he doesn't care about the consequences his teamates, fans, and club owners bear but the money he makes out of the fixing. People are so mean, damn.
ReplyDeleteErrrrr Sodje isnt Igbo u this silly personality bringing in ethnicity into everything now suck on that... he isnt ibo neither is Akpo He might even be from your village. Ignoramus.. meanwhile this Sodje is just a disgra, foolish and very greedy fool.. av said foolish abi. He is that foolish mcheeeeew
DeleteU r such an idiot. Must associate everything with tribe? U r just a demented fool. U r one of the problems Nigeria has. Get a life!
DeleteI guess you want to draw out people. Like the name sounds like the tribe you are calling. I don't know why Stella enables all these tribalist comments here. Abi u wan join the bandwagon of other blogs just to create traffic. Very soon this underaged pikin here will attract her cohorts and this will be a trend here.
DeleteNow small pikin, go and study your 'lacombes' as ur exam starts tmrw!!
Shyla
See d level of ignorance mingled with illiteracy has reduce u & ur kind. When did urhobo/itshekiri becomes igbo? Get some geographical education & come out of ur cocoon. Bigot
DeleteAnd who told u he's IGBO? And even if he is? U re such a weaklin...pls don't call ursef a man u hear me? Wen d say men should come out, if u try come out, may the earth u re standing on swallow u..I don't care whr u re from cos I knw everyone from d useless place u re from, are all thieves. trabalistic idiot.
DeleteFool. He's not ibo. He's urhobo. Tribalistic idiot
DeleteSo you expect us to believe that you didnt know that the Sodje brothers were Warri boys, all this time they've been doing good things in England? One of does bad now and all of a sudden he is Igbo? SMH.
DeleteU all should shut the fuck up. Anybody that is not Hausa or Yoruba is Igbo in Nigeria. Why are u all denying him? Igbo man would do anything for moneeeeeeeeeyyyyyy. PERIOD. U all can take several trips to hell.
DeleteU all should shut ur traps. Google is ur damn friend. When u get on there, type Igbo / Demographics and see if Delta or Asaba is not there. Delta is an igbo region. U all are fools, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is from Delta, and when u type igbo, u see her picture there, so what makes Sam Sodje not igbo when he is from Delta state. Why are u all trying to deny him? Since he is not Hausa-Fulani or Yoruba, then he is Igbo.
DeleteGosh 12.03 u r even more stupid than I thought ....... So blc asaba can be classified as igbo that means d whole delta state are igbos. Do u realise how stupid u sound ......abeg get off blogs and spend useful time educating urself . That u can't put a price on
DeleteUr stupidity is mind blowing ..... So even ijaws, urhobos are now igbo people. Smh . Olodo
Anon 12.03, your ignorance is mind blowing. Yorubas have spent decades telling the rest of Nigeria that Itsekiri are part of the yoruba nation (mainly because of oil). So they ate yoruba when they are good or when you want their oil, and ibo when they are bad? The problem with most yoruba people is that they know nothing outside the Lagos-Ibadan acus and probably Abuja. Don't you know that we have several multiethnic states in nigeria? Kogi, plateau, rivers state, delta, Edo etc? Imagine the type of high handed arrogance that would make a tribe brand anyone who is not yoruba or Hausa as Igbo?!!!!
DeleteUr a big fool for saying that, which delta be igbo. Ignorance na big crime o. Ode. Y Lola marry psquare no be money. Y are d hausas. Killing themselves to rule Nigeria cus of money. So we nigerians love money not just d ins but may u be poor all ur life since u can't do much for money
DeleteThe dumb guy talked way too much...too much!!! Damn! He's messed up...not just his career but that of his brother in Tranmere Rovers. Another stain on the Green-white-Green.
ReplyDeleteAnyone heard about the Emeagwali scam? What's with Nigerians in the diaspora and scam/fraud? *John.
Stella this story is not true. Am there family friend pls u people should there n confirm stories before posting it. And this fool coming here to talk as if u knw Sam from ur comment it obvious u dnt knw him so shut d fuck.
DeleteIt's all over the news here in the UK. He was even filmed talking, so what do u mean?
DeleteDafty family frend my ass...if u really knw dem den u will knw wassup by nw...u are surely one of d outkast family frend daz why u knw nuffin goin on d insyde...go on bbcworld website nd help ur famzin self awt...
DeleteSee famzing o! Family friend indeed, he was filmed confessing it all and it's all over the news, d whole world watched him on tv.
DeleteAnon 7, your comment would have made sense if you didn't add the statement about Igbos. What does the issue under discussion have to do with ethnicity?How can Nigeria develop when we still have people with your mindset? You are nothing but a tribalist and a bigot and in my eyes you are no different from a racist. It might interest you to know that Sodje is Urohobo from Delta state, and for your information,I am not Igbo,I am from Delta State too.
ReplyDeleteU are as stupid as hell. Delta state is under Igbo. Google is ur friend idiot. Type in Igbo and read all through, u will see Asaba / Delta under Igbo, u moron
DeleteKai, this is what is called gobe. Naija for show.
ReplyDeleteOh lord!!!another bad reputation 4 nigerians
ReplyDeleteAm still trying 2 understand SANI KAITA & AIYEGBENI'S stupid actions in S.A 2010. It is probable they were influenced with MONEY to messed up NIGERIA's chances during that world cup event
ReplyDeleteIgbo? Forget the name Sam, his other two brothers are called Akpo and Efe. I bet you think names like Adesua and Ufot are Igbo. Any name in Southern Nigeria is Igbo to you.
ReplyDeleteYou need a class in social studies to help you differentiate Nigerian names. Perhaps you went to the toilet, you were sleeping or most likely you were skiving while social studies classes were on in your school.
The confidence in your ignorance is amazing.
Last week three people were also named; Delroy Facey and two other Africans. I will leave you to find out those names.
Ifeanyi, far from it. It is called a sting. This wasn't an issue of a trusted friend. Similar things happened in cricket and recently snooker. Undercover reporters get tips from bookmakers and they arrange for a sting to happen.
Back to the matter at hand. If they are all found guilty, they should pay the price.
Stella, no waffi reference here?
You are the most stupid of all. Then what is he? If he is not Igbo, U should rather go and read Igbo history or better still Google. Anuofia
DeleteIn as much as I don't support a bit of his action, I still feel pity for him n wish someone really talked sense into him before this happend, this may be the end his career n hope others have learnt from this.
ReplyDelete@anon 4.29p.m, the liquid hatred you have for lgbos has distorted your reasoning. ls the name sodje an lgbo name? The guy is from Delta State, even at that, he is a Nigerian just as we both are. We accuse others of racism, What can we call this?
ReplyDeleteWhat is the hatred in the statement? When did making a statement about a tribe that likes money become hatred. Or when did love for money become a sin or crime? No one hates the igbos but the fact is they will do anything for money. This is no curse or hatred, it's just facts , just like the Yorubas love parties and will do anything to make sure they attend one.
DeleteAnd what makes you think he's Igbo?
DeleteAnd what makes you think he's Igbo?
DeleteNa Wao! Onu ukpaka,basket ati leaky leaky mouth! He was supposed 2 b careful wit his utterances.
ReplyDeleteSome Nigerians be hustling from a negative perspective.
ReplyDelete@ anon December 9, 2013 at 12:06 AM and all the other times you commented, you can never teach an illiterate ignoramus. Chief of fools calling people fools. It is Google that it teaching you that all of Delta is Igbo. You are not fit to be called a Nigerian. GTFOH and go back to your father nairaland.
ReplyDeleteThis sam sodje character is so so stuuppiiidd. Not only has he just calmly thrown own away his own career he has just triggered an avalanche that will cause so many other footballers' careers to come tumbling down, what an bone-headed humpty dumpty. He really is the last person anyone should do business with.
ReplyDeletehahahaha , seriously so some people can be this FOOLISH !!!!(EYES WIDE OPEN) .
ReplyDeleteonly a small part of Delta state is Igbo , majorities of the other tribes in delta states ARE NOT IGBO ................ Abeg get off blogs and learn more abt Nigeria
I cant believe you confidently came back to type more rubbish that Delta state is an Igbo state . hahahah foolishness knows no bound. See how confidently you typed such rubbish .
U are the stupid fool here. U all are changing ur minds now after checking Google right? U all are daft as hell, at least I made ur stupid ass go read what u never knew about ur region. Lol. I ask again, if Delta is not Igbo state, then what state is it? Is it Yoruba or Hausa-Fulani? Idiot, now coming to say only a small part is Igbo after claiming its never igbo. Fucking hypocrites. Delta is under Igbo and u idiots here should "Go and Die"
Delete@ anon december 9, 2013 at 12:51 PM death becomes you. only those who wish others death are the ones that die asap.
ReplyDeleteDelta state is not Igbo and has never been classified as an igbo state..........bloody illiterate , instead of you to accept your olodo-ness and do research on Nigeria you are still talking go to hell.
ReplyDelete