Former MLS MVP Luciano Acosta is under investigation for potential spot-fixing after betting irregularities were noted on the player receiving a yellow card.
Stake highlighted an unusually high volume of bets on Acosta to receive a booking when playing for Fluminense against Bragantino earlier this month. The gambling company contacted Sportradar, which in turn alerted the Brazilian soccer authority (CBF).
Stake is fully licensed in Brazil following the country’s revision of its gambling regulations at the start of last year.
Club Denies Any Wrongdoing
Fluminense confirmed the investigation, but said Acosta denies any wrongdoing.
“Fluminense FC received notification from the CBF about the incident and informs that it is available to cooperate with the competent bodies,” read the statement, as highlighted by OneFootball. “The player denied participation in any type of irregularity.”
Acosta signed for the club last year, moving from FC Dallas in the MLS. He won the league’s MVP award while playing for FC Cincinnati in 2023. He is the club’s all-time leading goalscorer, netting 54 times in 150 appearances over four seasons.
He is also no stranger to receiving yellow cards. In the MLS, he received 23 bookings in 93 matches. Since joining Fluminense, the Argentine midfielder has maintained a similar ratio with four yellow cards in 16 matches.
Acosta Shove Sparks Brawl
In the match earlier this month, Acosta received a yellow card in the 47th minute for a shove on Bragantino player Lucas Barbosa. The incident sparked a brawl that resulted in three yellow cards and two red cards.
Yellow Card Betting Ripe for Scandals
Soccer remains the sport with the highest number of suspicious betting incidents, although Sportradar noted that the number of suspected cases fell last year from 730 in 2024 to 630 in 2025.
Markets on players to receive a yellow card may be particularly susceptible to manipulation. Players can receive a card for relatively little, and it has almost no bearing on the match.
Another player in Brazil, Ênio, was indicted earlier this year on charges of deliberately collecting yellow cards for betting purposes.
Brazilian midfielder Lucas Paqueta also sparked a lengthy investigation when it emerged family members in his home country had wagered on him to receive yellow cards while playing in the English Premier League for West Ham. Paqueta was eventually cleared of the charges.
International Cooperation Essential to Fight Corruption
Brazil recently signed the Macolin Convention, an international treaty that seeks to unite efforts to tackle corruption in sports.
The UK is also considering ratifying the convention and recently heard testimony on its merits.
“Without an instrument like the Macolin Convention, if hundreds of unusual micro-bets are placed in Brazil on a minor event like a yellow card in a UK match, it is virtually impossible for UK authorities to track it down, and the criminals ultimately walk free,” Madolina Diaconu told a House of Lords committee earlier this month.
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Former MLS MVP Luciano Acosta is under investigation for potential spot-fixing after betting irregularities were noted on the player receiving a yellow card. Stake highlighted an unusually high volume of bets on Acosta to receive a booking when playing for Fluminense against Bragantino earlier this month. The gambling company contacted Sportradar, which in turn alerted
The post Former MLS MVP Under Investigation for Spot Fixing After Yellow Card Incites Brawl in Brazil appeared first on CasinoBeats.