Despite the disclosure of football match-fixing, a majority of Thai people believe it is unlikely to affect the popularity of the game and support for Thai football, according to the result of an opinion survey by Suan Dusit Rajabhat University, or Suan Dusit Poll.
The poll was conducted on Nov 22-25 on 1,219 people throughout the country to compile their opinions on the disclosure by the Football Association of Thailand (FAT) and the Royal Thai Police that arrest warrants have been issued for 12 match-fixing suspects -- including a number of players.
Asked to comment on the issue, 45.59% of the respondents said it would considerably affect the image of Thai football; 25.49% said it's a longstanding problem that has been overlooked previously; 11,76% said the problem should be solved immediately and the culprits punished; 8.82% said the problem is caused by betting on football, and 8.86% wanted to know who was involved in the racket.
Asked the single question of how long football match-fixing has been going on in Thailand, a majority - 65.22% - of the respondents answered "for a long time"; 30.93% were uncertain, and 3.85% believed that it's a new phenomenon in Thailand.
Asked whether this would affect the popularity of the game and their support for Thai football, 68.83% said this is unlikely, while 31.17% believed it would affect the image of Thai football and erode their faith in it.
Asked what they want to know about match-fixing, 47.44% replied that they want to know the people behind it; 31.32% the motives; 17.40% how it is carried out; 13.37% who has been participated, and 11.72% how much money is involved.
