AIPS Sport Media Awards 2020: Investigative Reporting scores three against match fixing

Patrick Oberli, Idah Waringa and Jeff Kinyanjui, Sergio Rangel and Fred Justo

AIPS Media

VIGEVANO, March 22, 2021 - The special award regarding investigation involved extraordinarily three different continents and a same, worrying topic: match fixing in football.

“This year we decided to recognize three different productions instead of one - said AIPS President Gianni Merlo - investigative reporting have to be encouraged and protected. The work done by the colleagues who risk their own careers if not their lives to unveil the world sport distortions is fundamental for the whole profession. We believe in our freedom and independence, today more than ever”.

Swiss Patrick Oberli created Fixed, A Football Comedy, for Ziggosport TV in The Netherlands, uncovering the famous Togo-Bahrein game whose repercussions are still going on. “In 2010, when the match was played, it was a comedy all over the world. But nobody, even FIFA or Interpol, did investigate on this match. This is the beginning of our documentary. Who were the actors. Our investigation was to find these people in Bahrein, Togo, Austria and many other places”, he said. 

Idah Waringa and Jeff Kinyanjui, in Kenya, were awarded for the Football Con, a joint work involving print and TV. “Winners and losers are decided way before kick-off,” they said in an investigation of the virus that is destroying Kenyan football. “We feel honoured, having received just incredible input from many people, and also thank Nation Media Group that gave us the platform for exposing this,” said Waringa. “Match fixing does not stop, it is still going on”, added Kinyanjui.

Sergio Rangel and Fred Justo, representing O’Globo (Brazil) unveiled the mafia of the lower divisions in their Video documentary Mafia on the field - How a criminal organization fixed soccer scores to make money and profaned Brazil’s biggest passion. “We are here with the rest of the crew, thank you to AIPS for this support. Everybody heard about match fixing, we too, when we started investigating, we had a big challenge, to know everything about the fixer. We came face-to-face with the fixer and we received many proof,” Rangel said.