Tarxien footballers probed on suspected match-fixing

Five footballers who play in the first team of Premier league side Tarxien are being investigated over match-fixing by the Malta Football Association and the police.

It was club officials that passed on the information to the police, sister news site Illum has reported. It is unclear whether particular football games were flagged as suspicious.

The news site reports that among the five players indicated over suspicions of match-fixing are people who in the past played with the U-21 national team.

Tarxien Rainbows are languishing in the lower rungs of the Premier league with 12 points from 12 games.

MFA integrity officer Franz Tabone confirmed with Illum that an investigation was underway.

A draft law introducing harsher penalties for match-fixing and granting investigators wider powers was unveiled last August.