Foreign footballZlatan Ibrahimovic may have gotten himself into a lot of trouble. The Swedish newspaper Sportbladet reports that the Swedish star player is a co-owner of Malta-based Bethard bookmaker. This is against FIFA and UEFA rules and can therefore cost dearly.
At Bethard you can bet on matches in the Italian League and qualify for the World Cup and European League. These are the competitions that Zlatan himself participates in, with AC Milan and the Swedish national team. FIFA and UEFA require that players with financial ties to gambling companies not, under any circumstances, participate in competitions that may be gambled with that company.
Ibrahimovi became a part-owner of Bethard in 2018. The director of the games company, Eric Scorp, informed Sportbladet in an email that the 39-year-old international player was still a shareholder. According to the annual report, Pittard made more than 300 million euros in profits last year.
Years of comment?
The act is against FIFA’s moral code. Ibrahimovi is not only liable to a fine of up to 100,000 euros, but he can also be banned from all football-related activities for a period of three years. At around the age of 40, this meant an abrupt end to his career.
The Swedish Federation would have known a conflict of interest for years. Chairman Hakan Sjöstrand informed Sportbladet that he has not yet spoken to the player about the latest development.
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