Four players banned for match-fixing offences in A-League

Four players have been banned from ⁠all ⁠football-related activity for several years for their part in match-fixing offences in Australia’s A-League.

Kearyn Baccus and ex-New Zealand international Clayton Lewis were paid A$10,000 (£4,940) each to get themselves booked during Macarthur FC’s game against Sydney FC in December 2023.

Both were sentenced to a two-year conditional release order in September and have now been banned for five years by Football Australia, effective from May 2024.

They also accepted the offer of completing 200 hours of unpaid football-related community service ‌to reduce their bans by 12 months.

Meanwhile, Riku Danzaki and Japanese compatriot ‌Yuta Hirayama have been banned for seven years from June 2025.

Former Western United midfielder Danzaki pleaded guilty in August to deliberately earning yellow ‍cards in multiple A-League games in April and May.

He received A$16,000 (£7,900) from bets placed by his friend Hirayama, an amateur player.

All four ‌have decided not to exercise their ‍right to appeal and accepted the sanctions.