Greek Culture and Tourism Minister Pavlos Geroulanos admitted on Wednesday that professional football in Greece is corrupt and has a long history of corruption.
"Absolutely there have been corrupted leagues," Geroulanos, who is in charge of professional sports in the country, told Skai television.
"There are indications that there was corruption in the results. There were times when the conduct of the teams, owners and fans did not fit the type of sports that historically Greece has produced."
Geroulanos said he does not want a delay in the start of the season, scheduled for the end of August, due to an ongoing probe into match-fixing which has seen the arrests of several club owners and players from the top two leagues.
"Today Greek football is very corrupt," said Geroulanos.
"And unfortunately it destroys the good things that Greece had done in sports. We have to let justice do its job, even if it takes months and the season has already begun.
"We will keep open the option to delay the start of the season if we have new developments. By all means, the investigations will continue."
The statement by Geroulanos comes a day after Michel Platini, the president of UEFA, the sport's ruling body in Europe, visited Athens in order to offer expertise to help the Greeks in their battle against violence, match-fixing, doping and bad refereeing in the leagues.
He said a team of experts from UEFA, including former top Italian referee Pierluigi Collina, will be visiting Greece in August to coordinate efforts in this direction.
"We will finish from football any players who are involved in match-fixing and illegal betting," warned Platini on Tuesday.
"Whatever touches the game and the players, touches our soul. If you go to a match knowing the outcome, you don't have to go to the stadium. We are not the police. But we must cooperate with justice in all countries."
The latest allegations come a decade after the exposure of another match-fixing ring in Greece, known as The Hut.
More: sportingreece
