Pinto da Costa banned for two years; Boavista relegated

“Final Whistle” corruption charges upheld

The Disciplinary Committee of the Portuguese Liga has come down hard on the culprits found guilty in the corruption case named the “Final Whistle”.

FC Porto president Pinto da Costa (pictured) has been suspended for two years and the club has been docked six points. The points deduction is largely meaningless given that the Dragons are 20 points clear at the top of the table with one match remianing.

Boavista have been relegated to the Liga Vitalis (second division) and former president Joao Loureiro suspended for four years. The president of Uniao Leiria, Joao Bartolomeu, was punished with a one-year suspension. Heavy fines have also been imposed for the offences, with the clubs involved found guilty of attempting to bribe referees.

A full list of the sentences and punishments is as follows:

FC Porto / Pinto da Costa
Two year suspension for Porto president Pinto da Costa and 10,000 euro fine; deduction of six points from FC Porto in the table and 150,000 euro fine for the club. The punishments follow the attempted bribery of match referees Jacinto Paixao (4-year ban), Jose Chilrito and Manuel Quadrado (each imposed with a two and a half year ban).

Boavista / Joao Loureiro
Found guilty of bribery in three matches in the 2003/04 season against Benfica, Belenenses and Academica. Boavista relegated to the Liga Vitalis (2nd division) and fined 180,000 euros. Former club president Joao Loureiro imposed with four-year suspension, and fined 25,000 euros.


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Leiria / João Bartolomeu
Leiria president, Joao Bartolomeu, suspended for one year and fined 4,000 euros, while the club was fined 40,000 euros, for attempted bribery in the match versus Belenenses in 2003/04. Leiria also deducted three points in the league table.

Referee Augusto Duarte
Referee Augusto Duarte has been suspended for six years, accused of attempted corruption in a match between Beira-Mar and FC Porto in 2003/04.