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Ambrose Li

A Hong Kong court has convicted two footballers and a betting agent of bribing fellow players to rig game outcomes in the city’s largest match-fixing case in recent years.
Former Hong Kong Under-23 player Brian Fok was convicted on Friday of five charges, including three counts of offering an advantage to an agent in violation of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance.
The 32-year-old Nigerian-born defender, together with fellow player Luciano Silva da Silva, 38, and betting agent Waheed Mohammad, 29, were each found guilty of two counts of conspiracy to cheat at gambling.
The trio was remanded in custody after the verdict at West Kowloon Court.
The case was adjourned to May 29 for sentencing, pending the three defendants’ background reports.
A fourth defendant, 31-year-old footballer To Chun-kiu, was acquitted of one count of conspiracy to cheat at gambling.
Magistrate Peter Yu Chun-cheung accepted the testimonies of two prosecution witnesses Jean Maciel and Marcus McMillan, that Fok approached both with offers to make money in 2021 by intentionally losing Premier League matches.
Fok, Maciel and McMillan were employed by the Hong Kong Football Club (HKFC) at the time.
Fok told Maciel they could make HK$10,000 (US$1,280) per match, and later increased the amount to HK$30,000, but Maciel rejected both offers.
The defendant also persuaded Maciel not to play in a match upon learning that he would.
Magistrate Yu pointed out that the HKFC was a weak team in the league and that the absence of Maciel, a strong player, would make a difference to match outcomes.
Fok made a similar offer to McMillan, which was turned down. He then offered to give McMillan HK$10,000 to intentionally lose a match in November 2021, but the latter again declined.

After moving from HKFC to Happy Valley Athletic Association (HVAA), Fok conspired with da Silva, a player at Central and Western District Recreation and Sports Association (C&W), and Mohammad to lose or manipulate the number of goals or corner kicks in first division matches in the 2022-2023 season.
In the mitigation for Fok, counsel Simon So Shun-yan said his football career had “completely vanished” as a result and that the lengthy case incurred significant financial pressure.
So pointed out Fok was now in businesses entirely unrelated to football and that he would not be able to commit a similar crime again. So asked for a community service order for Fok. But magistrate Yu stressed immediate imprisonment was inevitable for him.
The investigation by the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) revealed that the three defendants placed illegal bets amounting to at least several tens of thousands of dollars in more than 30 matches involving the HVAA and the C&W, based on predetermined results and match-fixing arrangements.

Fok also provided live signals during matches to the betting agents, who attended the games as spectators on site, to facilitate their associates in placing bets accordingly.
In a statement, the ICAC said the commission had always strived to maintain local sports integrity through a three-pronged anti-corruption approach comprising law enforcement, prevention and education.
In 2024, the ICAC launched the Integrity and Corruption Prevention Guide for National Sports Associations (NSAs) to help enhance the governance and internal controls of NSAs.
The guide covers areas such as management and ethical requirements for athletes, coaches and other stakeholders, as well as the application of technology to foster integrity and fairness in sports competitions.
In light of the corruption risks revealed by this case, the ICAC said it had reviewed the code of ethics and relevant guidelines for the Football Association of Hong Kong, China.
It added that it had also completed corruption prevention reviews of the HKFA’s corruption-prone areas, including the organisation and monitoring of matches, and the registration of football clubs and match personnel.
“The HKFA is reviewing and implementing the ICAC’s recommendations to reduce corruption risks in the relevant procedures,” the anti-corruption agency said.


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3 convicted in Hong Kong’s largest football match-fixing scandal in years

Footballer Luciano Silva da Silva arrives at the West Kowloon court for a match-fixing case. Photo: Edmond So

Betting agent Waheed Mohammad arrives at the West Kowloon Court for a match-fixing case. Photo: Edmond So

Brian Fok (in waistcoat) leaves Eastern Court in Sai Wan Ho in November 2025. Photo: Sun Yeung

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Brian Fok (in waistcoat) leaves Eastern Court in Sai Wan Ho. Photo: Sun Yeung

Witness Jean Maciel leaves Eastern Court. Photo: Sun Yeung

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Hong Kong footballer Brian Fok secured bail pending trial on five bribery and illegal gambling charges. Photo: Brian Wong

Defendants appeared in Eastern Court on Thursday. Photo: Nora Tam

The anti-graft agency arrested 23 people in May after discovering an alleged match-fixing scheme orchestrated by a bookmaking syndicate. Photo: Jelly Tse

News

Hong Kong

Law and Crime

Two players and betting agent found guilty of bribing footballers to rig match results across city’s top two leagues between 2021 and 2023


Two players and betting agent found guilty of bribing footballers to rig match results across city’s top two leagues between 2021 and 2023.


3 convicted in Hong Kong’s largest football match-fixing scandal in years

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Two players and betting agent found guilty of bribing footballers to rig match results across city’s top two leagues between 2021 and 2023

Two players and betting agent found guilty of bribing footballers to rig match results across city’s top two leagues between 2021 and 2023