CHEATING is rife in South African football with both referees and players involved, South African Football Association (SAFA) head, Kirsten Nematandani, has conceded.
Speaking at a weekend workshop on match-fixing and sports betting in Johannesburg which involved officials from Interpol, FIFA and COSAFA Nematandani blamed a lack of ethical standards for the rot.
"Referees are being bribed and officials are making decisions to benefit themselves and their friends rather than the good of the game,” he said.
"And how many times do we still hear about age cheating in junior competitions. It has been going on for a long time now."
He added: "The problem is getting bigger. We need to put in place effective measures to counter this.
"We have to invest more in governance."
The workshop followed stunning revelations last week which saw Kaizer Chiefs team manager Bobby Motaung arrested in connection with fraud charges relating to the building of the Mbombela Stadium, a 2010 World Cup venue which cost around US$142 million to complete.
"It is now a matter of public record that we were targeted by a match fixing syndicate before the 2010 World Cup. In March this year FIFA came to investigate and we gave them our full co-operation.
"We hope to have the conclusion of their investigations soon," he added.