Image Source: Al Jazeera   BY BRIAN BONDUS  ANCHOR ZACH TOOMBS A 19-month European Police investigation has uncovered allegations of match-fixing in hundreds of European soccer matches -- a huge blow to the integrity of the world’s most popular sport. Europol Director Rob Wainwright spoke Monday about how widespread the problem really is. He said a total of 425 people in 15 countries are suspected of being involved in fixing more than 380 matches. Wainwright went on to say the allegations involve World Cup, European Championship, and Champions League matches. He said the fixing stems from a sophisticated organized crime unit out of Asia that spread to Europe. “Which generated over 8 million euros in betting profits and involved payment of at least 2 million euros in corrupt payments to those involved in the matches.” As part of the investigation 14 people have been sentenced to 39 years in prison. More than 100 more prosecutions are expected, but the Financial Times explains this may be hard for two reasons. One of them: different laws in different nations. “Some countries consider match-fixing as a type of fraud while others regard it as a violation of sports laws.” And second-- geography. “The main problem getting investigators to co-operate across borders.” Match-fixing has long been a problem in European soccer. Two separate scandals hit the Italian league in the past decade, involving dozens of individuals and some of the country’s most high-profile clubs. So what can clubs do to combat the problem? A Deutsche Welle contributor suggest two solutions: one, each club needs a unit dedicated to stopping the problem. “Secondly, education. It’s young players being targeting by fixers at youth tournaments and they need to be protected and know the dangers of saying yes once because once the fixers have their claws in you, those players will be vulnerable forever.” Europol is not releasing specifics on the alleged match-fixing because the investigation is ongoing.