BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) _ Belgium's soccer federation said Monday it was launching a full investigation into allegations of match-fixing in seven matches this season involving La Louviere of the First Division.

Rene Verstringhe, who leads the federation's investigations team, said it was opening a probe after VRT television on Sunday aired a monthlong investigation into the allegations.

The program claimed 14 players and coaches from several teams were linked to a Shanghai-based gambling ring involved in fixing worth hundreds-of-thousands of euros.

``The people named will be questioned to see what they have to say,'' Verstringhe told VRT. ``We want to take all necessary disciplinary actions if needed.''

Belgian judicial authorities launched a probe into game fixing after officials noted unusually high amount of money being bet on matches last November.

Media reported then that betting at Internet bookmaker Betfair was as high as 600,000 ($820,000 Cdn) for La Louviere's surprise 3-1 win over Sint Truiden on Oct. 29 _ a game between two of the league's smaller clubs. That's about 20 times more than is usually staked on top-ranked clubs such as Anderlecht.

``What disturbs me most is what happens now, next weekend for example, there's the risk that if a goalie makes a mistake people will say, `look he's been bought by the Chinese Mafia,''' said Alan Haydock, captain of FC Brussels, a team that was also named in the VRT report.

The program mentioned six other games including Cercle Brugge's 2-1 win over Sint Truiden on Nov. 5, when 230,000 ($315,000 Cdn) was staked on Sint Truiden losing.

Verstringhe said if the federation found that games were fixed, those involved could face bans from playing or coaching, and some of the teams involved could be thrown out of the first division.

The VRT probe said players and coaches were paid for ensuring games were lost, by a specific score.

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