UEFA's Platini to help Greece reform soccer

Posted Wednesday, July 27, 2011 by YAHOO Sport

UEFA President Michel Platini promised to send teams of experts this summer to help Greece reform its soccer leagues following fan violence at games and a match-fixing scandal, a Greek sports minister said Tuesday.

Platini met with Prime Minister George Papandreou and Pavlos Geroulanos, a minister for culture and sport.

Geroulanos said four teams of experts from European soccer’s governing body will head to Greece to provide advice on dealing with match-fixing, doping, violence and refereeing.

“There is the will on both sides to put a stop to the corruption and violence in Greek football,” Geroulanos said. “We looked at practical ways to deal with these issues and transfer UEFA’s know-how.”

More than 60 Greek club officials, players, businessmen and others are under investigation in a corruption probe. Ten people were in custody on charges of money laundering and participation in a criminal organization.

The Greek investigation was launched after UEFA gave authorities a report citing irregular betting patterns, mostly involving Greek Cup and second division games in 2009 and 2010.

Last month, the Greek Football Association suspended its operations for two weeks to press the government and professional clubs to take an active role in cleaning up the sport.