Soccer-UEFA Cup matches probed as betting unit is launched

By Patrick Vignal

BORDEAUX, France, Sept 26 (Reuters) - UEFA are to launch a gambling investigation unit after it emerged 25 UEFA Cup matches were being studied due to irregular betting patterns, European soccer's governing body said on Friday.

"There is a danger within our game but we will not let irregular betting patterns or corruption affect the outcome of matches," UEFA secretary general David Taylor told reporters at the end of a two-day meeting of UEFA's executive committee.

The unit should be fully operational from next season and will feature experts who will review suspected irregularities in matches from European competitions, said UEFA legal affairs director Gianni Infantino.

"We will start recruiting immediately," Infantino said. "We need additional expertise. We have to set up the necessary tools to fight against this."

UEFA, Infantino said, had started reviewing 10 matches from the current season and 15 from last season, all from preliminary rounds of the UEFA Cup.

Those games, UEFA believe, could have been affected by irregular betting, a growing problem in soccer and other sports such as tennis.

The governing body said the special unit would need to work in close cooperation with governments and police.

"Sports governing bodies reach some limits in this matter and need full support from authorities who have access to information they don't have" Infantino said.