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French investigation into PSG-Red Star match dropped

A French investigation into suspected match-fixing in a Champions League game between Paris Saint-Germain and Red Star Belgrade in October 2018 has been shelved, the Serbian club’s lawyer said on Thursday.

The Parquet National Financier (PNF), which is responsible for fighting financial crime, on May 7 sent out a notice that it had closed its investigation, Antoine Vey, a lawyer for the Serbian club said, confirming a report in French sports daily L’Equipe.

According to L’Equipe, UEFA was alerted before the match that a Red Star manager was preparing to bet nearly five million euros (6 million dollars) on a defeat for his team by five goals. PSG then won 6-1.

The PNF then opened a case of “criminal conspiracy” to commit an offence of sporting corruption and to commit an offence of organised fraud.

“Since the beginning of the investigation, Red Star has expressed its desire to collaborate in this investigation and to identify the source of this malicious and anonymous denunciation,” Vey told AFP.

“It is therefore satisfying to see that nothing has been done to substantiate this false allegation.”

“The question of the damage caused to the club remains, and we will see if we take legal action or not,” he added.

When the investigation opened, Red Star said it intended to file a complaint for slander.