The English FA’s written judgment in the case of West Ham midfielder Lucas Paquetá, the most mediatised match-fixing case in recent Premier League history, has been released on September 3.
At close to 300 pages, the judgment examines why Paquetá was accused, then exonerated, of deliberately getting himself booked in certain matches so that associates could profit from bets on his yellow cards.
What initially looked like a slam dunk case of misconduct ultimately fell apart, and Paquetá was found not guilty on all charges.
Below, the Sports and Crime Briefing breaks down the verdict, explaining why the case collapsed from evidentiary gaps and investigative missteps to the plausible innocent explanations that undermined the FA’s accusations.
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