On Sunday afternoon in Espoo, Finland, a regular football match in Kolmonen, Finland’s fifth division, suddenly took a bizarre turn. Immediately after the final whistle, the police stormed the pitch during the match between EsPa / Renat and FC Finnkurd. They arrested a Brazilian player from Finnkurd.
A striking detail: the arrested striker had just scored seven goals in his team’s 8-1 victory. What was meant to be a sporting highlight ended with a ride in the police van.
The police came onto the pitch from all sides at once
According to EsPa/Renat team manager Michael Kahila, the raid was well prepared and everything happened very quickly.
‘As soon as the referee blew the whistle, officers came from all sides,’ he said. ‘They blocked every exit. Some were in uniform, others in plain clothes. One player was taken away immediately. Our team was allowed to leave, but Finnkurd had to go back to the dressing room.’
According to Kahila, there were at least twenty officers on the pitch. The leader of the operation briefly explained what was happening. He ordered the Finnkurd players to line up, after which their identity details were checked.
FC Finnkurd does not know why the player was arrested
Club chairman Mücahit Yilmaz responded with surprise on Monday.
‘I wasn’t at the match, I was abroad. I only returned to Finland today. I first need to find out what is going on,’ he said.
When asked if he found the arrest shocking, he replied briefly:
‘Of course it’s intense, but I don’t know the reason. I have no information.’
This is part of a larger investigation into match-fixing in Finland
According to sources, this action is part of a broader investigation by the Central Criminal Police (Keskusrikospoliisi) into alleged match-fixing in Finnish amateur football. Kolmonen in particular has been in the spotlight on several occasions.
In 2024, the Finnish Football Association (Palloliitto) asked its disciplinary committee to investigate suspicions of manipulation in the Second and Third Divisions. In early 2025, that committee concluded that there was clear evidence of manipulation, based on match data. However, because no specific players or clubs could be identified as perpetrators, no sanctions were imposed.
Brazilian players came to Finland under false promises
Several young Brazilian players previously told Helsingin Sanomat how they came to Finland under false pretences. They paid thousands of euros in their home country for registration fees, insurance, visas and tickets. Once there, the promised contracts, salaries and bonuses turned out not to exist.
Some players said they only got playing time if they participated in match-fixing. Multiple sources confirmed that players were asked to deliberately make mistakes during matches.
The alleged intermediaries denied these allegations. They claimed they never demanded money or made false promises.
Antti Koivula speaks of a weak legal system
Former lawyer and sports ethics expert Antti Koivula responded on LinkedIn with sharp criticism. He called the raid in Espoo ‘dramatic but necessary’ and pointed out that Finnish criminal law does not contain a clear law against match-fixing. As a result, authorities have to fall back on legislation on fraud and bribery, which he believes ‘is poorly suited to this problem.’
Koivula noted that it was striking that the player in question had just scored seven goals. He emphasised that the club has been suspected of involvement in manipulation for years, but that no real convictions have been made.
In his opinion, Finland is allowing a ‘major enforcement gap’ to exist, while other European countries are making progress in the area of sports integrity.
In a recent analysis of the failing legislative framework surrounding gambling in Finland, Koivula delves deeper into these weaknesses.
Veikkaus and sports authorities have also been aware of the risks for some time
According to earlier reports, the Finnish lottery Veikkaus, the sports ethics organisation SUEK and Palloliitto have been aware of possible manipulation since 2022. Yet real action was slow to materialise.
The situation makes it clear that Veikkaus is more involved in supervision than one might think at first glance. This is especially true because their odds and payouts are influenced by suspicious matches.Koivula, who has long been committed to a fair sporting world, also said that he believes Finland should act more quickly against corruption in sport and gambling practices.