The Asian Football Confederation has imposed significant bans on a female match official and a player from Mongolia for attempting to manipulate the outcome of an AFC Women’s Champions League 2025/26 (Preliminary Stage) match. The AFC Disciplinary and Ethics Committee made the decision to ban the two individuals involved, as announced on Wednesday. Ms. Munkhtsetseg Batkhuu, a Mongolian football official, has been banned for ten years, while player Ms. Namuuna Narmandakh received a five-year ban for their involvement in the manipulation attempt.
Both individuals were found guilty of conspiring to manipulate the result of the AFC Women’s Champions League 2025/26 (Preliminary Stage) match between Stallion Laguna FC (PHI) and Khovd Western FC (MNG) on August 25, 2025, violating Article 66.1 of the AFC Disciplinary and Ethics Code. These bans reinforce the AFC’s strict stance against any form of match manipulation and its ongoing dedication to upholding the integrity of Asian football.
The sanctions align with a four-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) in 2024, demonstrating the AFC’s commitment to safeguarding the sport in Asia. Under this MoU, the AFC and IBIA collaborate closely to identify irregular betting patterns and suspicious activities in football matches across Asia, with the IBIA’s Monitoring and Alert Platform providing real-time data on suspicious betting to the AFC for prompt investigations.
This disciplinary action also echoes FIFA’s strong stance against match-fixing, highlighted during the first FIFA Integrity Summit. FIFA President Gianni Infantino emphasized the persistent threat of match manipulation and stressed the importance of collective efforts between FIFA and its Member Associations (MAs) to combat this issue effectively.
