This kind of hustle is not new. It's worth remembering the Italian scandal of the early 1980s, which left local football with the task of regaining credibility.

The punishments were exemplary. A total of 12 players were arrested while still actively playing, and another five were ordered to testify once the games were over.

Among those involved were players with stints in the Italian national team, such as Paolo Rossi, Bruno Giordano and Enrico Albertosi.

In the end, the League's disciplinary commission made an example of guilty parties; Milan and Lazio were dropped to Serie B, Avellino, Bologna and Perugia started the 1980/81 season five points down and 22 players received three-month suspensions even expulsions from the sport.

Rossi, Italian hero at the 1982 World Cup, served a three-year suspension. It would be just to see penalties of this level happen in Brazil.

Some clubs have chosen to remove players as a preventive measure, others have not, while some have preferred to talk to players to understand their involvement and, after that, make the decision of a possible removal.

Was it worth it?

Easy money for a mere booking may be appealing, but it should not speak louder for a player who has fought so hard to reach a level that few reach, if we are to analyse the number of interested and dreamers who battled hard to have the same opportunity and fell by the wayside.

All the sweat and sacrifice they made to reach the top flight in Brazil can go down the drain for an almost pointless proposal.

It's at times like this that training and character can make the difference. As much as the salaries of some (or others) involved are not high, the involvement is inconceivable.

Perhaps, they thought it would be something easy to do but difficult to be discovered. More complicated to understand is the situation of some who earn good salaries and subjected themselves to participate in this scandalous process.

Now that the house of cards has fallen, they must be sorry, looking at their children, parents, friends and spouses, certainly ashamed to see one of great pride in the family having had an unnecessary and vexatious relapse.

It begs the question about this player's attempt to justify himself to his loved ones, or even a father trying to explain to his little ones what happened on the national scene, that his team's player did not honour the club's colours as he should.

Too late to apologise

Looking back and remembering the mishaps to get this far can make them immediately regret it.

But now it is too late for apologies, admissions and requests for forgiveness. They had plenty of time to ignore messages, hang up the call or wonder if it was really worth it.

They could have talked to so many people, assessed the scenario and been grateful for the tempting opportunity. They are educated men, fathers of families and, until proven otherwise, law-abiding.

As serious as tarnishing their career, which could risk expulsion from the sport, is soiling the name of Brazilian football for money that certainly wasn't worth it.

How many now will not think that a penalty, a card, or a corner happened of their own free will? They've compromised the credibility of Brazilian football and who knows how long until it's recovered. Don't be surprised if more names of players and even referees emerge as this story develops.

There is no limit to the level of filth that an organised crime like this can reach. Football is both an overwhelming passion, but it also has a dark side.

Time to review

The positive side may be the need to review how these bets work and their regulation. Bringing bookmakers closer to the government is fundamental for the responsible bodies to be alerted, when situations that cause some kind of doubt appear.

The Brazilian government's attempt to regulate the sector is an important and necessary step.

A draft bill was delivered to President Lula da Silva on Wednesday with the aim of regulating bookmakers in the country. 

What is deserved is, at least, a rigorous and fair punishment for those involved. The impunity so commonplace in Brazil cannot take another page in its chapters.

Union to prevent new actions

The time to act is now, and the investigation needs to be as deep as possible.

While there is no firm hand, with the presence of CBF, security bodies and even the clubs, the tendency is that similar situations will continue to happen.

If the scenario remains lax, they will roll over, make easy money and deceive millions of fans. Brazilian football, so famous for its talent, gets a huge a permanent stain, taking advantage of the presence of betting companies that, in recent years, have grown and invested a lot to the point of being present on shirts, banners, advertisements and ads on every click or change of channel.

What was supposed to be something positive in Brazilian football, with more money coming in for clubs and media, has gone the wrong way and the time to correct the course is yesterday.

Let's see the unfolding of a situation that embarrasses and saddens those who believed that every gesture or action on the pitch was made thinking about the best for the team, and not for the pocket of unscrupulous manipulators who had the support of players, who deserve a strict punishment to allow plenty of time to think about what they did.