Police open investigation into football corruption allegations

Police have launched a formal investigation into the football corruption allegations made by The Daily Telegraph in September.

The City of London Police said the probe had begun after reviewing information collected by the newspaper. A statement read: "Detectives from the City of London Police Economic Crime Directorate have reviewed material gathered by a recent Daily Telegraph investigation into suspected corruption in football. "This review of the material has concluded and the decision has been taken to begin a criminal investigation into a single suspected offence of bribery." There is no further information yet on which aspects the investigation will focus on, or which individuals will be involved. The paper published a series of pieces over the course of a week following a 10-month long sting operation conducted by undercover reporters. The paper's claims forced Sam Allardyce out of his job as England manager after just 67 days when he was filmed by undercover reporters discussing the FA's third party ownership rules and criticising his predecessor Roy Hodgson. Then Barnsley sacked assistant manager Tommy Wright after he was filmed allegedly accepting a £5,000 cash payment from a reporter posing as the representative of a fictitious far eastern company looking to invest in football. And the same day, the paper named Southampton assistant manager Eric Black when they claimed he attended a meeting with agent Scott McGarvey and an undercover reporter earlier this month at a Hampshire hotel, where he was recorded on secret camera allegedly discussing payments to club officials. More to follow.