Six Individuals Banned for Match-Fixing Filed a Lawsuit Against the HFF

Six individuals banned for match-fixing have filed a lawsuit against the Football Federation of Armenia (HFF). This information comes from the judicial information system "Datalex." Most of them are football players, all affiliated with the "Masis" football club (one of them has also played for "Aragats").

The HFF imposed various sanctions on these six individuals for their involvement in match-fixing, an announcement made on July 3rd. The individuals include Vyacheslav Agafonov (a player for "Masis," banned for life from participating in any football-related activities), Oleksiy Bondarenko (a player for "Masis," banned for one year from participating in any football-related activities and fined 500,000 AMD), Oleg Gumenyuk (a player for both "Masis" and "Aragats," banned for life), Alexey Solosin (a player who unofficially served as the goalkeeper coach for "Masis," a stakeholder with a 17% share in the club, banned for life), Dilyaraa Shigapova (the de jure 51% stakeholder of "Masis," banned for life), and Dmytro Klimakov (a player for "Masis," also reportedly a stakeholder with a 17% share, banned for life).

They have appealed to the court, seeking to annul the decision, refute what they claim are defamatory statements, apologize for the insult, and seek compensation for damages to their honor, dignity, and business reputation.

The HFF's sanctions were not only directed at the "Masis" club participating in the Armenian First League but also impacted three other clubs from the same league—"Aragats," "Torpedo," "Lokomotiv"—as well as "Yerevan" from the Premier League. All these clubs and several representatives faced various sanctions for match-fixing. In total, 58 individuals and 5 clubs were banned, and the First League's 2019-20 season was suspended.

In addition to the aforementioned individuals, 13 more players from "Masis" were also banned. Moreover, the club has been stripped of its rights to participate in the Armenian First League's 2019-2020 season, and it has been prohibited from representing teams in any football tournaments organized by the HFF for a duration of two years. The results of 11 matches from the 2019-20 season were annulled, with "Masis" declared technical losers and the opposing teams declared winners. At the time of the suspension of the league, "Masis" was in 15th place among 17 teams with 20 points after 27 matches.

The club has appealed against the decisions made regarding them, but on July 30, the HFF announced that the Appeals Committee rejected their appeals and upheld the bans. It was noted that the Appeals Committee’s decision is final and not subject to appeal, except to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Appeals from other clubs—"Lokomotiv," "Torpedo," and "Aragats"—to the Appeals Committee were also denied.