BUGERS ON THE FIELD – 3

SPORTS

The 2004 football season has become history. It's kind of an ugly story. Annoyed by this circumstance, the journalists of the sports department of the Novaya decided to continue the detective series "Bugry on the field." (The previous passages of this purely...

The 2004 football season has become history. It's kind of an ugly story. Annoyed by this circumstance, the journalists of the sports department of the Novaya decided to continue the detective series "Bugry on the field." (Previous excerpts from this purely fictional work appeared in #80, 2003, and #30, 2004.)

Recall that we are talking about some kind of mythical Premier League, where the results of matches are determined by the amount of cash in the pockets of players and referees, and a number of teams have enlisted the support of very authoritative comrades who, at their private meetings, paint places in the standings. For example, it was assumed that the NKVD club was “supervised” by a certain Zhenya Kharkovsky, who had championship ambitions (not in vain), “Jupiter” was Mr. Shishkan (who did not have ambitions in principle, but he did not like very much when the coach of his team argued with him), and "Sapphire" - Mr. Dragon (who counted on a gift last season and received it).

By the way, once again we want to draw the attention of readers to the fact that in this work of art we ask you to consider all accidents as coincidences, and coincidences as accidents.

Along the busy highway leading to the capital, a gentleman of a very characteristic appearance was riding, with which five years ago a chain, golden "nuts" and huge "boilers" would have been in harmony, and now - a good silk tie. The cell phone chirped, and a familiar voice rang through the hand-free headphones:

- Well, you're swollen, bro, disappeared, forgot ...

“Sorry, I’m all business.”

- Did you get it right?

- Lucky, brother, unexpectedly. I visited Znamenskoye for football, in the VIP box, just at the match "Jupiter" - "NKVD" ... Well, remember when there was a fight? I met such people - now I do not complain.

- Did you visit Shishkan, or something?

- Yeah. Estimate, "NKVD" then before the game muddied a present for him - a branded club bag, well, in the bag - all sorts of rubbish. So after the match, Shishkan was in such a rage - he threw this bag right at the NKVD coach Usazaev. He shouted: they say, take your clothes. Because of that fight, by the way, the transition from the NKVD to the Jupiter of the attacker Tirichenko fell through. It seems that they agreed on a transfer, and then Tirichenko scores the decisive goal, and after the fight, the desire to cooperate somehow disappeared.

- Wait, I don’t understand ... The NKVD always has a relationship with Jupiter - tip-top. Shishkan often met with Zhenya Kharkovsky, they decided things, scheduled matches, and then bam, and their teams are fighting on the field.

- So the players of both clubs were sent huge bonuses for the victory. Then, you understand, there was a fundamental rivalry, and Roma Chilsinovich was sitting on the podium - he was watching who had the better team: Zhenya Kharkovsky or Shishkan. Well, they both go to London, to the honorary box of the Romin Bridge stadium, just like Turinov, the director of the Premier League. Here's another topic: Zhenya Kharkovsky and Shishkan were best friends in football until they quarreled over agent Meshkov.

After all, Meshkov represented the interests of Jupiter. But his player was sold to the wrong place. And here's how: the agency license was paid in a Swiss bank, 250 thousand francs for a deposit - and you are an agent. The account is open. And, they say, money was brought in from Jupiter. So Meshkov fell under the millstones. They didn't want to kill him. The investigator told me that Meshkov was killed by people with whom he was personally acquainted. They wanted to scare, but then it turned out like this ... Since then, "Jupiter" with the "NKVD" instead of friendship, a policy of non-intervention has been outlined.

- And you yourself are not going to London?

- It's important, of course. Now with all the lads at one moment only in London and you can cross paths. Vaughn Zhenya Kharkovsky flew to London instead of playing with Kvadratan, because the result was agreed in advance. The Bratva says that that match was handed over to two players whom the NKVD had given to Kvadratani before that - Trisov and Topov. It's a common thing: "NKVD" at the finish line of all rivals tried to charge. When they directly negotiated with the president of the club, when they approached the players.

- What about rates?

- According to the price list. When a couple of opponent players are charged so that a decisive mistake is made, 100 thousand greens are paid for this. Bargaining is appropriate, as they say. And they fought terribly with competitors - with Kolomotiv and Svistit. (“Mopedo” has already been eliminated before.) With whom “Kolomotiv” and “Svistit” play, the bonus is offered if the points are taken away. 30 thousand for each player. Then “Whistling”, by the way, began to work in the same way. Moreover, refereeing at the NKVD was seized. After all, Turinov from the Premier League approves the referees: he can send anyone to any match. In addition, Turinov joined the DK (disciplinary company). And look: the decision of the Palace of Culture on the fight in Znamenskoye is a joke for chickens. So it turns out: NKVD players are allowed complete chaos, and competitors from Svist and Kolomotiv are discharged in full, even if something is blurted out outside the field. True, Turinov ended up in Matrosskaya Silence for the final - failures began.

- Is that why the NKVD could not beat the Tail of the Testaments and Dominoes?

- Not only. They definitely went to Domino with a proposal to surrender the game, but with the coach Ryazantsev and the threat of Domino's relegation, this was impossible. And before the game with the “Tail of the Testaments” they thought that the championship was in their pocket.

Why does Turinov always work for the NKVD? In his youth, he was rooting for "Kavardak", breaking away for him.

- Right. But then he was sick, and then grandmothers ... Zhenya Kharkovsky, at first he also asked the price of "Kavardak" when Ryazantsev was still working there. And in the early nineties, Zhenya Kharkovsky helped Mopedo - he supported the team. Well, they are professionals, why should they ... Turinov is an ace: he settled two airlines, now he has come to football - to settle television broadcasts. Now the Premier League has taken the right to host the championship from Voloskov, the head of football, for four years - they will sell broadcasts. The money is gigantic. In order, they say, Zhenya Kharkovsky called Turinov into the league. He said that this is a person who will earn money for the league.

- I remember, some kind of hai rose about this ...

- By itself. At first, the president of Kolomotiv, Philateliev, was supposed to steer the league, he also picked up the director - Kustinov from the Foreign Ministry. And Zhenya Kharkovsky brought Turinov. Philately refused to work with him, so he had to castling.

- Come on, about football ... How is it yourself?

— Sorry, but without football in any way. I’ve been engaged in transportation, I recently crossed paths with one official, so he said that they also settled the match between Kolesnik and Kolomotiv there in advance, at the ministerial level.

- Yah?

- The players and coaches of Kolomotiv were not in the know. Do they need to know why? They played and won. Everyone is happy. Why do you think the goalkeeper of "Kolesnik" removes his hands at the first shot on target? So the day before the match there was a meeting. From the ministry, the city fathers are told: "If Kolomotiv does not become a champion, your hockey club will not see finances next year." I had to take it under the hood.

The two friends talked for a long time and decided in the end to fly together to London when Chilsinovich was there - maybe something would burn out again ...

In the midst of soybean and corn planting in a suburb of Rio de Janeiro, an email was received from a distant, cold country.

"Hello mother! Bad news. Decided to write to you instead of calling. Do not be offended - a third of the salary goes to the phone, and then the president of the club said that he would not pay bonuses for the last victories, since he bought the games himself. I swear to you by all the grains of Capacabana, I didn't expect such a mess coming here. I'm doing fine, but...

You know, the Brazilians play in almost all the teams here: we call each other, exchange news. And I'll tell you: there are more fixed matches here than in the Fortaleza championship! We recently sold the game, but no one told me anything. Everything was organized by the goalkeeper and the central defender - they received one and a half hundred thousand dollars each ... But they don’t share with me, they say: you have to live to be thirty years old, they won’t take a share earlier. They say, if you are young, then run, create the illusion of a struggle.

That "Kolesnik" with "Domino" was driven into an agreement, everyone knows. Prior to that, Kolesnik had an impressive series of victories, and could compete for medals. But Kolesnik players don't need medals. They handed over the game, and the money from Domino was transferred to Kolesnikov's veterans (hundreds of thousands each) through the football player Drishin. "Kolesnik" passed the game, so their coach almost openly confirmed everything at a press conference. Then there was a debriefing - Drishin was expelled "for a decrease in sports results." So they wrote in the newspapers.

And at the Kolesnik base, I was told, the wrecked car of the attacker Khvazov was put on public display. In Kolesnik, a series of car accidents happened: three players smashed their cars, and now they are earning money on new ones.

With "Kolesnik" in general, a lot of interesting things happen. In the match with the NKVD, as expected, they gave away three points - they already received the money. And right before going onto the field, local bandits burst into the locker room of Kolesnik. They say: “We cover your team, help you live, and you hand over the matches! If you don’t do your best on the field now, you will regret it.” And counter-work was carried out with the judges. And in the NKVD they know that the game is negotiable, they released a semi-reserve squad, no one is in the mood to play - so Kolesnik won.

In other championships, it's not like that. Every team fights to the end there in every match, regardless of whether the task for the season is solved or not. And here, as soon as the club decides not to fly out, they sell all the games.

The last two rounds are a series in general. My interpreter is rooting for Domino, who fought to stay out. He really hoped that in the penultimate round of the three competitors someone would lose points. So what do you think? By the middle of the first half, all three outsider clubs were leading: Khvostov - at Sapphire, Kvadratan - at Kolesnik, and Ankor - at Andalia, and away.

Andalia, a round before, managed to stay in the league, defeating the same Kolesnik (we have half the team in the bookmaker's office, they bet money on the victory of Andalia over Kolesnik).

But what happened in the last round… One businessman, through his assistants, bet $50,000 at various bookmakers on the results of all eight matches. The coefficient turned out to be about 15. So this eccentric won 700 thousand greens, clean. After all, there were six "agreements". They say that only "Mopedo" and "Sapphire" won in the last round without taking care of ensuring the result in advance.

Do you remember, I wrote that at the beginning of the championship more than half of the matches ended in a draw? Then, after all, the results of matches were decided on the field, but now, as in every ending of the season, in offices and at gatherings (this is how the meetings of important seniors are called here). Here in the last rounds there is no more than one draw, which most often suits both sides, as in the match between Domino and Kavardak. But "Kavardak" could send a principled opponent to the lower leagues, but somehow they didn't try very hard.

However, maybe no one will fly out - they say the league can be increased to 18 teams at the end of the season. Such lawlessness even in the Brazilian children's league did not happen! And all because of a strange political party - it seems, "Edno" is called. Imagine what these seniors want, that's what they do. In football, too. If they wanted to, they kicked out the president of the football union, if they wanted to, they increased the league so that the team of deputy Gvoryunov would not fly out. A month ago, all club presidents unanimously said that the expansion of the league is unacceptable, and now 12 of them vote “for” (except for the presidents of Kolomotiv, Kavardak, Mopedo and Morkva).

So, mother, say hello to all the brothers and sisters, Aunt Louise and Don Diego! And I'll be back to you soon, I don't like it here.

“You mean you want to judge…” Gennady Pavlovich drawled thoughtfully, a man of about fifty. "Come on, who's stopping you?" You seem to be a strong guy, I still remember you from football. Go through all sorts of applications, preparations, tests, pay the “tax” to the right people ... Yes, and I will try to put in a good word for you.

Thanks, Gennady Palych. - A lanky middle-aged man smiled gratefully, waved to the waiter, ordering another portion of cognac. - If only I...

-What? Gennady Pavlovich interrupted warily.

— To consult. The lanky took a sip of cognac. — What and how. I would like to know some of the nuances.

“You’re not Julia, Kol,” Palych smiled paternally. - What do you want to know? About money and fixed matches?

“Well, in a way, yes,” the lanky one hesitated.

“Everything comes with experience,” Palych said instructively. “But anyway, I’ll tell you. So, naturally, no one will let you into the Premier League right away. You will first work in the lower divisions. There, of course, there is chaos. I know from my own experience. By the way, you don’t make a discount for the prescription of years - now nothing has changed ... Even in the second league you will be “charged”, offer you anything: from bags of sugar and girls to green bills. And, of course, there is nothing to talk about covered "glades". Moreover, they will often “charge” with very ingenious combinations.

A familiar referee talked about such a situation. The two leaders of the second division were supposed to meet each other through the tour. The referee has a “charge”: for this match, one of these teams must lose the previous game and, moreover, lose their captain - the best striker ... The mentioned referee enters this very game. "Works". The opponent of the team, against which the referee was “charged”, is absolutely none. (The referee is already starting to get nervous.) And then, by some miracle, he finally manages to roll the ball into the penalty area - there is a hustle and bustle. The referee whistles joyfully - penalty. He whistled and waits for the “ordered” captain to react to this. He runs up: they say, for what? Judge: “I am for the money. And you get a red card for arguing with the referee.” That's all, the "charge" is completed ... Do not worry about your financial situation - a couple of "literate" seasons, and a comfortable old age is provided.

But, on the other hand, they can charge you not only with “gingerbread” - I remember that before the important match, the “owners” took another friend of mine to the mountains and, for the best result, shot over his head. And he judged, "as it should."

“Wow,” Kolya was horrified. - It's a safety issue...

- Our brother gets it only for work not done - when he took the money, but did not provide the result. There is one sure sign, - Palych smiled. - If a referee is beaten, you need to look at what penultimate match he was refereeing: what is in the major league, what is in the first, what is in the second. Remember: everyone thought that the referee Kulebyaev was beaten by representatives of "Kavardak", but in fact - "Jupiter".

“Yes, yes,” said Kolya. - What does it turn out, football - a game of authorities?

- Yes, how to say, - Palych thought. - There is, for example, such a person as Shishkan. Many referees still remember him from the second league. I went into the judges' room and started handing out money: this is for you, this is for you ... And just for good work, really good work. And many of ours, who have retired, can approach him and ask for money. And he will.

“Listen, Palych,” Kolya asked, already forgetting about the cognac. Who appoints referees for matches?

- Panel of judges, head - Kolya Pravnikov. Who appointed Pravnikov? Voloskov is the head of football. And then there is Turinov - the director of the Premier League, he is also included in the commission for the appointment. And the Premier League pays us a salary and bonuses - so decide who is more important.

Yes, just don't forget: to move up from one league to another, you often have to pay an "entry fee" to the right people. For the Premier League, the minimum amount is 10-15 thousand dollars.

- Who is Turinov, huh? Kolya fiddled nervously with his napkin. What role does he play in appointing judges?

- How curious you are, - Palych chuckled. - Shadow. But decisive. So it was before. Kolya Thin from Domino, when he was president, was not a member of the appointment committee, but Alexander Kabakov was sitting there. He did everything professionally. And matches with the participation of "Domino" were judged by Taras Malozub, Kolya Pravnikov - untouchables.

- Listen, Palych, how much can you “cut down” in a match now?

Everything depends on the importance of the match. For example, for the match "NKVD" - "Whistling" I would ask for "one" - a green lemon. But, if in a modest way, you can agree to 500 thousand. There were rumors that Judge Kettai was offered such a sum. But he didn't need help.

- And how is the bargaining with the arbitrator going?

- Differently. They come home, meet them on the street, by phone ... Or through intermediaries. They are often match inspectors. To take money, not to take - decide for yourself. Just know what kind of "backwoods" the starting amount starts from one hundred thousand dollars.

- "Glushnyak" - what is this, murder? the lanky Kolya whispered in horror.

- Yes. Only the football team. All right, I have to go. - Palych got up from the table and headed for the exit, turned around at the very door and said goodbye: - "Glushnyak" is murder. On the field. Learn Football!

PS We ask you to leave your comments on this literary work on the website www.NovayaGazeta.Ru. And we remind you, dear readers, that all the coincidences in the text presented to your attention are only coincidences, and therefore you should not draw thoughtful conclusions with or without.