27-6-2025
Udinese and Super Eagles goalkeeper Maduka Okoye is facing a four-year ban after he was referred to the Italian football disciplinary commission with three others.
If found guilty of sporting fraud, then he risks up to a four-year ban.
Okoye has been under investigation since January 2025 by the Udine Public Prosecutor’s Office when it emerged that he deliberately made the referee to give him a yellow card for time wasting in the 64th minute of a Serie A game between Udinese and Lazio on March 11, 2024.
According to Football Italia reports Authorities flagged a rush of suspicious betting activity around Okoye receiving a yellow card, which at 8/1 odds allegedly generated over €120,000 in winning bets. Most of them were based around the provinces of the city of Udine.
The 25-year-old is a Nigeria international with 18 senior caps who joined Udinese from Watford in the summer of 2023.
The others indicted alongside Okoye include Diego Giordano, the owner of local pizzeria “Biffi,” which was frequented by Udinese players, Mario Bordon, a “local entrepreneur,” and the manager of a local “Snai” betting outlet one of the biggest Italian betting brands.