FC Porto and Boavista accused of corruption

Punishments could involve six-point penalty and relegation

Porto and Boavista and their president and ex-president Pinto da Costa (pictured) and Joao Loureiro respectively, are facing heavy punishment after being officially accused of corruption by the Portuguese Liga’s Disciplinary Committee.

The most severe penalty would involve FC Porto being docked six points this season and Boavista being relegated to the Liga Vitalis (second division).

FC Porto have been accused of attempting to influence the officials prior to the matches Beira-Mar-FC Porto (0-0) and FC Porto-Estrela da Amadora (2-0), played in 2003/2004, and if found guilty the club is likely to be castigated with a three-point penalty for each match.

Porto’s mythical president, Pinto da Costa, who has been at the helm of the club for well over two decades, turning the team into Portugal’s most powerful side during that time (14 championship titles in the last 20 years), is facing a ban of up to two years from the game if found guilty as charged.

Boavista are in even deeper trouble, with the Disciplinary Committee charging the club and its former president, Joao Loureiro, of bribing referees.

If found guilty, the Liga’s regulations dictate that the punishment for such a crime is immediate relegation to the division below.

A separate investigation into possible corruption in the match between Nacional da Madeira-Benfica, in the same season, was dropped due to insufficient evidence.