The big names involved:Out of the 680 games alleged to be fixed, the ones that stood out included 5-time Champions League winners Liverpool. The club has come under the scanner when it was revealed that their Champions League win over Hungarian club Debrecen in 2009 was fixed. According to some unconfirmed reports, Debrecen goalkeeper Vukasin Poleksic was allegedly paid by bookmakers. But in an interview to an English newspaper, Vukasin Poleksic refuted the claims.

Blast from the past:
This is not the first time match-fixing is making news in the world of football. In 2006, the high profile Italian club Juventus were stripped of their league titles of 2005 and 2006 and demoted to the Serie B (1st division football) after fixing allegations were proved. More recently, last year it was reported that more than 20 Italian clubs were under the cloud of match-fixing and stated that 52 active players from the Seria A were involved in the scam.

After effects:With the match-fixing scandal hitting the footballing world, it has tarnished the image of the 'beautiful game'. Europol revealed that €8 million (Rs 57 crore approx) in betting profits and €2 million (Rs 14 crore approx) in bribes were paid to players and match officials. Singapore national Wilson Raj Perumal had ties to Asian and Eastern European gambling syndicates and is supposed to be the brainchild behind the this whole scam.

What is FIFA doing?:
Before the scandal broke, FIFA president Sepp Blatter had, in an interview to FIFA.com (dated January 1), said that "football leaders around the world should create their own anti-corruption courts. FIFA alone cannot be the tribunal" for everyone in world football." Was Mr. Blatter trying to wash his hands off the scandal that would soon break? Your guess is as good as ours!