Ex-Western United midfielder Riku Danzaki, amateur player Yuta Hirayama convicted for yellow card betting fraud

A former A-League player and his friend have been convicted and fined for committing yellow card betting fraud which “strikes at the heart of competitive sport”.

Ex-Western United midfielder Riku Danzaki and amateur player Yuta Hirayama, were each handed $5000 fines on Friday.

The pair had pleaded to be spared conviction over the one-month fraud, where Hirayama would place bets on Danzaki deliberately receiving yellow cards.

However, magistrate Nick Goodenough decided to convict both men to ensure others were “deterred and discouraged from doing the same thing”.

He said the offences “strike at the heard of competitive sport”.

“Supporters, teammates and coaching staff are entitled to know that all members of the team are working towards one objective,” Mr Goodenough told Melbourne Magistrates Court.

“Teams win, teams lose, teams draw, but on any given day either team has a chance.

“What you have both done is a betrayal of that ideal and that trust.”

Both pleaded guilty to seven betting corruption charges, including engaging in conduct that corrupts or would corrupt a betting outcome and one attempt at betting fraud.

They made fraudulent bets through agencies, including Bet365 and Tabcorp, with Danzaki pocketing about $16,000 in winnings from three matches after deliberately receiving yellow cards.

The pair successfully bet on Western United matches on April 27, May 3 and May 9, after Danzaki told Hirayama he would attempt to deliberately receive yellow cards in those matches.

Hirayama placed bets on Danzaki in the “player to be booked” market and Danzaki went on to perform reckless tackles on opposition players to get carded.

They also failed at placing bets on another match involving Melbourne city.

Hirayama and Danzaki agreed to split their winnings, with 70 per cent to go to the then-A-League player.

“Although your roles are different, I’m of the view that you are equally liable for the totality of the offending,” Mr Goodenough said.

“This type of offending undermines the integrity of sport, and it undermines the legal betting markets.”

Both had moved to Australia from Japan to further their soccer careers.

They met while playing for teams in Queensland, with Danzaki signed to Brisbane Roar in the A-League and Hirayama playing for Brisbane City in the state’s premier league.

Both later moved to Melbourne, where Danzaki joined former A-League club Western United in mid-2023.

His lawyer claimed at an earlier hearing that when Danzaki started playing for Western United, the embattled club was already under “significant financial strain” and was not paying players on time.

“It is in this context ... that Mr Danzaki makes a very foolish decision,” defence lawyer Lewis Winter said, adding that Western United has since gone into administration with their A-League licence revoked.

Hirayama’s lawyer Molly Deighton said her client, who was suspended from Bayside Argonauts in Melbourne, wanted to stay in Australia but his student visa may be impacted if he was convicted.

Both lawyers asked the magistrate to take into account their early guilty pleas and admissions to police as soon as the fraud was uncovered, as well as their good character and lack of priors.