frbleus1-6, Exercise 3: The Marseille affair of 1993

Model answer (check the details):

Documented (from court records, the league's decisions and reliable press reports): the Marseille-Valenciennes league match took place days before the Champions League final; investigators found that people connected to Marseille offered money to Valenciennes players (check); the league stripped Marseille of the 1992 to 1993 title and relegated the club administratively; Bernard Tapie was convicted and given a prison sentence (check); the Champions League title was not taken away.

Rumour, opinion or less certain: how far the offer was known to the whole squad; whether other matches were affected; whether the punishment was too harsh or too light; and claims about the motives of politicians and journalists.

What each source would add:
- Court judgments: the exact charges, evidence accepted and sentences.
- League and federation decisions: the sporting penalties and their reasons.
- Press reports of the time: the timeline, but also claims that were later retracted.
- Memoirs and interviews: the participants' versions, which are interested accounts and should be tested against the records.

Care: keep to documented findings, especially about named living people.