Lucas Paqueta Is Threatened With A Prohibition Of Playing For Life In The Aftermath Of Match Fixing Allegations

JAKARTA - West Ham United star Lucas Paqueta's family is being investigated by the FA in the alleged match fixing.

Paqueta was also dragged along and threatened with being banned from playing for life. The FA is investigating more betting claims involving Lucas Paqueta's family.

Reports in Brazil claim Paqueta's uncles and cousins, Bruno and Yan Tolentino, have admitted paying former Real Betis striker Luiz Henrique more than 5,000 pounds a few days after the Brazilian received two suspicious yellow cards that sparked an integrity investigation in Spain.

An investigation into Henrique conducted by La Liga and the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) last year was linked to a FA investigation that led Paqueta to be charged with four counts of match-fixing.

However, Spanish authorities did not take any disciplinary penalties against Henrique. Betis has sold the 23-year-old winger to Brazilian club Botafogo this summer for 18 million pounds.

An integrity warning against suspicious betting patterns involving Paqueta and Henrique yellow cards was triggered by online gambling firm Betway, sponsor of West Ham's shirt.

Many suspicious bets against Paqueta have led him to be charged and believed to have been carried out by his family members.

In an interview with Brazil's website, UOL, Paqueta's uncle, Bruno Tolentino, admitted that he had made a bank payment to Henrique and won the money by betting on his match.

However, he denied having received any insider information or suspicious activity.

According to UOL, two bank transfers worth a total of 5,500 pounds were made from Tolentino to Henrique in January and February 2024.

"It was money that I owed him and I have paid him. It was an agreement between us."

"That is the money I owe him. He has lent it to me."

"We agreed to pay him back and we did. When I had the money to pay him back, I paid him."

"I can play, I'm not banned. I can't get classified information."

"From Luiz Henrique, it was purely lucky. It was one in a million," Tolentino told UOL.

Previously, the FA declined to comment and was deemed not to know the alleged involvement of Tolentino. Now they are investigating the matter.

Paqueta has also been scheduled to meet the FA. However, there is no date for a disciplinary hearing to be tried by a three-member independent commission and the FA.

The FA is now continuing to prepare for the case. As SunSport revealed in June 2024, the FA also encouraged Paqueta to be given a ban on playing football for life.

Until this news was published, a spokesman for Paqueta still declined to comment.