Several clubs in Allsvenskan and Superettan are reported to have been affected by the attempted scams, according to Fotbollskanalen earlier this week. The scammers' method: Using a name and image on Whatsapp to pretend to be a sports manager for a foreign club wanting to place a bid on one of the Swedish club's players.
It is the amount for the medical examination – reportedly between 50,000 and 200,000 kronor – that the scammers are said to have tried to get hold of.
It's not that simple in a stressful sports manager's daily life where ninety-nine percent of all work is done via Whatsapp. Clubs call about players all the time and then an actor suddenly contacts you and presents a bid on one of your players, says Enes Ahmetovic, sports manager in Örebro and formerly in Värnamo, to TT.
False bid on Bajrovic
He himself has been contacted by scammers in his role as sports manager. About a year ago in Värnamo, and earlier this year in Örebro – then it was about a bid on Melvin Bajrovic from a scammer claiming to represent the German club Darmstadt.
I was contacted for the first time a year ago. The fact that the scammers have continued since then shows that it must work, some Swedish clubs must have fallen for it. You don't keep going for a year if you don't manage to cheat anyone.
So far, it has not been proven that any club has actually transferred money to the scammers and thus been deceived.
At the same time, the scam is said to have gone so far that bids on players have been accepted. In one case, a player is said to have gone for a medical examination, where no one showed up.
No one would say this. If you go there and have to tell your board, it's quite embarrassing.
According to TV4 Fotbollskanalen, it is not known if any of the attempted scams have been reported to the police.
"Very high bid"
What are the red flags?
If it's too good to be true, it's usually too good to be true. It's often a slightly too high bid in the first bid. You don't place a bid of five million kronor on a player who comes from lower down in the club and has scored one or two goals in Allsvenskan. Then the phone call is often very aggressive, says Enes Ahmetovic.
He remembers the attempted scam in Örebro.
I understood that the person was not honest and asked him to email, then I saw directly that it was false. Both the email address and signature were incorrect, as well as the phone number. It's quite easy to check, but as I said, for a stressed sports manager, it can sometimes go very quickly. Not everyone does this security verification.
"Be observant"
Djurgården's sports manager Bosse Andersson shares the picture of the risks of scams in the football world.
We haven't received any false bids, but it's a tough world. Where there's money, there are opportunities, and you have to be observant, he says.
