The Simonovsky District Court of Moscow sentenced former Torpedo football club CEO Valery Skorodumov to two years in a general-regime penal colony in a case on unlawfully influencing the outcome of a sporting event. The information was released by the press service of Moscow’s courts of general jurisdiction.
In addition to the prison term, the court barred him from holding managerial positions in the sports sector for three years.
The criminal case is tied to the Torpedo vs. KAMAZ match played on May 24, 2025. The game ended 1-1, allowing Torpedo to reach the Russian Premier League without playoff matches. According to investigators, Skorodumov and club owner Leonid Sobolev, acting through an intermediary, passed 1.5 million rubles to referee Bogdan Golovko so he would influence the result.
After the match, the RFU expert refereeing commission ruled that the referee had wrongly decided not to award a penalty against Torpedo. Investigators say Golovko made that decision deliberately.
As Kommersant reports, another defendant in the case is club accountant Irina Volkova. Her case, along with the materials concerning Sobolev, was separated into a different proceeding. Investigators say Sobolev and Skorodumov also repeatedly influenced First League match results, including Torpedo vs. Tyumen and Torpedo vs. Shinnik. In the first instance, investigators say Golovko received 1 million rubles; in the second, referee Maksim Perezva was paid 3 million rubles.
Investigators also say referees were paid between 250,000 and 500,000 rubles for awarding a penalty or sending off an opposing player. In total, according to Kommersant, bribes may have been received by 13 referees who officiated First League matches in the 2024–2025 season.
After the scandal, Torpedo was expelled from the Premier League and fined 5 million rubles. In 2025, the RFU control and disciplinary committee banned Skorodumov from football-related work for 10 years, and Sobolev for five years. In June 2025, both men were placed in pretrial detention and denied the accusations at the time. Skorodumov’s case was later considered under a special procedure after he reached an agreement with prosecutors. Sobolev has also reportedly admitted guilt and is cooperating with investigators, though his case has not yet reached court. Volkova remained under house arrest until June 2026, but on June 21 the Meshchansky District Court of Moscow placed her in pretrial detention.