MLS Player Suspended Amid Gambling Investigation, Was Allegedly Paid To Receive A Yellow Card

Max Alves, a winger for the Colorado Rapids of the MLS, has been suspended due to his alleged connection with illegal sports gambling.

Colorado, along with the MLS, released statements announcing that a player on the Rapids' roster had been suspended without naming Alves. ESPN is reporting that Alves is the unnamed player as he was linked in a report from Brazilian outlet O Globo.

The report out of Alves' home country alleges he is part of an investigation that shows that he was paid $12,000 by an organization to receive a yellow card in a match against the LA Galaxy in September 2022. Alves entered that particular match as a substitute and picked up a yellow card 90 seconds into his appearance.

The yellow card in question involved Alves going high with his left foot against the Galaxy.

Text messages that were obtained by O Globo also show that Alves put former Houston Dynamo player Zeca in touch with the organization and that he was supposed to pull off his own match-fixing in October 2022.

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Five players in Brazil were also suspended by their respective clubs on Wednesday.

Alves started for the Rapids in their 3-1 win over the LA Galaxy over the weekend. The 21-year-old joined the Colorado organization in 2022 where he made 26 appearances for the club and another four for its second team.

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Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the PGA Tour, LIV Golf, and all other happenings in the world of golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. He somehow survived living in Knoxville despite ‘Rocky Top’ being his least favorite song ever written. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016 when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.