Top 5 Professional Sports Scandals

5. Tim Donaghy

Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy set off a firestorm of controversy in 2007. That summer, an FBI investigation found that Donaghy had placed tens of thousands of dollars worth of bets on games that he officiated. Worse yet, he admitted that he made calls that affected the outcome of the game, so that he could manipulate the point spread and win his wagers. Donaghy also went on to say that he was not the only NBA referee involved in such behavior, and that the league themselves sometimes ordered officials to extend playoff series to help increase TV ratings and ticket sales. Commissioner David Stern has denied this charge, and while the furor surrounding this scandal has died down in recent months, it nonetheless called into question the integrity of an entire sports league.

4. Tour de France Doping Allegation

Doping scandals at the Tour de France date back to the early 1900s, but it was in 1998 that the first major doping scandal erupted, complete with hotel-room raids by French police and a sit-down strike by riders on the 17th stage. Stricter drug testing requirements followed, as well as the formation of the World Anti-Doping Agency. Nonetheless, doping allegations remain a constant at the Tour de France, with seven-time former champion Lance Armstrong being a favorite target. Despite relentless accusations, Armstrong has never been found guilty of using illegal performance enhancers, although several others have, including Jan Ullrich and Floyd Landis in 2006 and Alexander Vinokourov and Cristian Moreni in 2007.

3. The Black Sox Scandal

The subject of the excellent book and movie Eight Men Out, the Black Sox Scandal involves the involvement of several members of the 1919 Chicago White Sox in a conspiracy to fix the World Series. As the legend goes, it was Sox first baseman Arnold Gandil who first came up with the idea to throw the Series, and used his underworld connections to set things up. He played on his teammates’ mutual distaste for Chicago owner Charles Comiskey. Gandil and seven other players (Eddie Cicotte, Oscar Felsch, “Shoeless” Joe Jackson, Fred McMullen, “Buck” Weaver, Charles Risberg and Claude “Lefty” Williams) were banned from baseball for their part in the fix, which led baseball owners to create the new office of Commissioner of Baseball to oversee league activities.

2. MLB and Steroids

From BALCO to the Mitchell Report and everything in between, baseball and steroid scandals have become inexorably linked. Several players, such as former stars Jose Canseco and Ken Caminiti as well as Yankees DH Jason Giambi, admitted to using steroids during their careers. Several others, including Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte and Miguel Tejada, were named in the Mitchell Report, filed by former U.S. Senator George Mitchell following a lengthy investigation. 500-home run hitter Rafael Palmeiro tested positive for steroids, while unsubstantiated allegations continue to surround all-time home run king Barry Bonds. There is no doubt that few scandals have has as much on a impact on a sport, both in perception as well as in reality, as the steroid scandal that has touched Major League Baseball.

1. The O.J. Simpson Trials

Never has a professional athlete fallen from such heights to such depths as O.J. Simpson has. Simpson, a former Heisman Trophy winner, a longtime NFL star running back and a member of the Professional Football Hall of Fame. In 1973, he became the first running back to rush for more than 2,000 yards in a single season. After his career was over, he became a football analyst, an actor and a commercial spokesman. Then, shockingly, he was arrested in 1994 and charged with the murder of former wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ronald Goldman. The trial was one of the most publicized legal proceedings ever. Simpson was acquitted of the murder charges but was later found criminally liable for Goldman’s death by a civil jury. He and a co-defendant were also recently found guilty of multiple felony counts, including kidnapping and armed robbery. The former football star now faces the possibility of spending the rest of his life in prison.

Of course, by no stretch of the imagination could we include all of the major scandals to ever cast a pall over professional sports. Among those that were close, but just couldn’t make the cut, include the fixed fight between Jake LaMotta and Billy Fox in 1947, the Minnesota Viking’s Party Boat incident in 2005, the 2007 Formula One espionage scandal and, of course, the New England Patriots’ Spygate scandal. Any other notable sporting scandals you think should have been included on our list? Post your comments below and let us know about them!