BANNED: Four Table Tennis England players suspended for match-fixing back in 2020

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Four Table Tennis England members have been suspended from playing following the outcome of a “complex international investigation” into match-fixing and betting irregularities. All of the allegations pertain to matches played in 2020 in Ukraine. 

The four players are: Luke Savill, Darius Knight, Joseph Langham-Ferreira and Kazeem Adeleke, who have all been suspended for between three years and indefinitely. 

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Table Tennis England is the governing body for the sport in England. Formerly known as the English Table Tennis Association, it is responsible for overseeing the development and management of the game. 

In 2021, Australian table tennis player Adam Michael Green was found to have placed over 1,000 bets on table tennis matches that took place across Eastern Europe. Green allegedly won more than £200,000 on the bets, which spanned seven months. 

During the investigation, it was found that Green had passed on information to his brother Matthew Green, as well as Table Tennis England player Luke Savill.

Following this, the UK Gambling Commission’s (UKGC) sports betting intelligence unit investigated matches played in Ukraine that had irregular bets placed via British betting accounts. 

Following the lengthy investigation, which the UKGC described as being “a complex international investigation”, four players were brought before Table Tennis England’s disciplinary committee, facing charges of breaching anti-corruption regulations. 

The committee ruling determined that Savill was guilty of fixing table tennis matches, as well as betting on them, and that he failed to cooperate with the group’s inquiry. 

Savill has been suspended for a minimum of six years, although the ban could continue indefinitely. 

Darius Knight was also found guilty of fixing matches and betting on them but was only deemed guilty of failing to fully cooperate with the enquiry. He received a six-year suspension.

Joseph Langham-Ferreira was guilty of fixing and betting on matches but was not found guilty of failing to cooperate with the enquiry and only received a three-year suspension. 

Kazeem Adeleke was found guilty of betting on matches and suspended for five years.

Table tennis is not as popular a sport with bettors as football or horse racing but, according to some estimates, it attracts nearly £2bn in bets every year, globally, and this figure is expected to rise in the coming years. 

However, Table Tennis England does not permit its players to bet on any table tennis games, even if they are not directly involved in the match.

Sally Lockyer, CEO of Table Tennis England, said of the investigation’s outcome: “We take our responsibilities as a governing body very seriously and ensure we fully investigate any claims of breaches of regulations or code of conducts.” 

The chief executive of the Gambling Commission, Andrew Rhodes, similarly praised the collaborative efforts of the multinational investigation, stating: 

“This case highlights the importance of global collaboration in protecting the integrity of the sport. Over the past five years, stakeholders across multiple jurisdictions have worked together to investigate and address concerns around match-fixing.”