The Department of the Agency for the Protection and Development of Competition (APDC) of Astana has issued a notice to the Professional Football League of Kazakhstan (PFLK). Previously, FBRK insiders reported that the Kazakhstan Football Federation (KFF) is suspected of lobbying for the interests of one of the numerous bookmakers.
Sources at FBRK report that, based on the APDC notice, the Professional Football League of Kazakhstan has withdrawn letters in which it had previously prohibited football clubs from engaging bookmakers not on the list of title sponsors of competitions in the 2024 season as sponsors.
It is not specified what exactly the Agency for the Protection and Development of Competition's complaint against the Professional Football League entails. We assume the reason was previously disclosed information about the lobbying of a bookmaker by the Kazakhstan Football Federation.
Furthermore, it was reported that two football clubs among the top teams filed a complaint with UEFA's Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body against the president of the Kazakhstan Football Federation, Adilet Barmenkulov.
It later emerged that UEFA is conducting an investigation into Barmenkulov. As foreign media reported, the Union of European Football Associations is checking why Barmenkulov took no action despite knowing about instances of matches being conducted dishonestly, and what degree of personal interest he has in match-fixing.
Recall that at the end of June, TV channel SPORT+ published an interview in which Adilet Barmenkulov spoke about the work being done aimed at eradicating corruption in the KFF refereeing department. Barmenkulov's statements confirm that he was aware of corruption among referees in the Kazakhstan Football Federation.
It is clear that the storm clouds over the leadership of Kazakh football are gathering ever more thickly. We can only hope that the ongoing investigations will yield positive results. The FBRK editorial team is monitoring the situation and will keep readers up to date with developments.