€20m to fight match-fixing

Zurich - FIFA has pledged to spend €20m and forge closer ties with Interpol to crack down on football match-fixing and betting fraud.

FIFA President Sepp Blatter says it will fund anti-corruption programmes over 10 years to educate players, referees and officials.

The project will operate from Interpol's base in Singapore.

FIFA believes fixers with Singapore connections have organised recent international friendly matches purely for betting scams.

FIFA and Interpol leaders signed the agreement after meeting detectives who are leading probes in Finland and Germany.

However, FIFA and Interpol say they have limited investigative powers and must rely on governments and law enforcement agencies to pursue cases.