Nicosia: Cypriot authorities are to investigate claims of possible match-fixing in soccer after UEFA raised the alarm, the island's justice minister said.
The probe into three first division matches comes after Cyprus's Football Association was handed information by European soccer's governing body which has been passed to the justice ministry for police to launch an investigation.
"Everything possible will be done to speedily conclude the investigation," said Loucas Louca, the Cypriot justice minister.
A UEFA spokesperson declined to comment, saying it was an ongoing investigation.
One of the matches UEFA has raised questions over involves a club in the top four in the league, who are former champions.
"This whole issue has shocked us because we never expected to have matches which, according to UEFA, could have been fixed in this particular way," said Kostas Koutsokoumnis, the president of the Cyprus Football Association.
Bureau Report
First Published: Friday, March 19, 2010, 10:27