ICC recognises France Cricket as an associate member [X.com]
Tough times lie ahead for France Cricket, who are facing allegations of fraud and corruption, which has now forced cricket's apex body, the International Cricket Council (ICC), into a possible investigation.
France Cricket is an associate member board within the ICC. As reported by France 24, France Cricket has been submitting false reports to the ICC and exaggerating the conduct of matches, with charges of fabricating games. The report quoted an ICC official stating, "We're looking into it," when asked by French media about FC.
Termed 'Phantom Matches', France 24 also gave a detailed explanation behind their allegations, stating how France Cricket-affiliated clubs are continuously faking scorecards.
Instead of the scheduled women's match, the men's under-19 semi-final - which should have ended far earlier - was taking place. Once the game ended, around 3:30 pm, both teams packed up and left. The women's second division game apparently did not follow. Three days later, France Cricket rubber-stamped the match as having taken place and posted the results on their website.
Most clubs cheat; they pretend to have a women's team. They pay for licenses, and then they fake score sheets online. We have refused to fake matches, and that means that even if we qualify, we're likely to never be able to get a promotion.
In response, France Cricket have dismissed the allegation against them, stating the concerned report is baseless. Speaking to Cricbuzz, President FC Prebou Balane said that the board is in talks with the ICC and that legal preventive measures are underway.
"These are absolutely fake and baseless allegations from a British-origin journalist trying to get some attention, especially with myself being of Indian origin and at the helm for the past 10 years, they haven't been any part of the system for a while for cricket in France."
 "Vishal Mehra")
