The case that broke Romanian football: 8 former manager and club owners, sent to jail

Newsroom 04/03/2014 | 16:53

Several Romanian business people involved in fixing transfers of football players were recently sentenced to jail, with different charges.

George Copos, former owner of FC Rapid – 3 years and 8 months, without parole;
Mihai Stoica, former manger of FC Steaua – 3 years and 6 months without parole;
Cristi Borcea, former owner of Dinamo Bucuresti – 6 years and 4 months without parole;
Ioan Becali, former manager– 6 years and 4 months without parole;
Victor Becali, former manager – 4 years and 8 months without parole;
Jean Pădureanu, former president of Gloria Bistrita – 3 years and 4 months without parole;
Gigi Neţoiu, former shareholder Dinamo and U Craiova – 3 years and 4 months without parole;
Gică Popescu – 3 years, 1 month and 20 days without parole.

All sentences issued by the Bucharest Court of Appeal are final.

The trial started in 2008 when the DNA prosecutors accused Ioan Becali, Victor Becali, Mihai Stoica, Jean Pădureanu, Gheorghe Popescu, Gheorghe Neţoiu and Cristian Borcea of illegal transactions with football players. The illegal transactions caused damages of USD 1.5 million to the state and over USD 10 million to other football clubs.

The suspects were initially acquitted in 2012. The prosecutors however appealed the decision, and the court found in their favor, sending the defendants to jail.

George Copos, the owner of Athenee Palace Hilton and Crowne Plaza hotels in Bucharest, sold the Rapid football club in 2013. Cristi Borcea sold the Dinamo Football Clujb in 2012.