London ( CNN ) -- Two top international cricket players from Pakistan were found guilty Tuesday of plotting to cheat and to take bribes in a major match against England last summer . Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif could potentially go to prison for up to seven years for the criminal offenses , part of a scandal that rocked the international sport . A third player , Mohammad Amir , pleaded guilty to the same charges . The court barred the press from reporting his plea until the jury reached their verdict on Butt and Asif , for fear of affecting the deliberations . They are due to be sentenced on Wednesday . `` This is a case of cheating , pure and simple , '' Metropolitan Police Detective Chief Superintendent Matthew Horne said in a statement after the verdict . `` The defendants , who are world-class cricketers , sought to cheat to enhance their substantial legitimate earnings . '' He said they had `` let down the cricketing world , their fans and the hardworking people that buy tickets to watch . '' `` They were role models to countless children around the world and have betrayed their trust , '' the officer said . The Pakistanis were accused of spot fixing , which involves deliberately throwing parts of a game rather than the whole match . Prosecutors accused Butt and Asif of taking part in a betting scam , allegedly arranged by Mazhar Majeed , during a match between Pakistan and England played at the Lord 's cricket ground in London . The News of the World , the British tabloid that first reported the allegations , said players deliberately bowled `` no balls , '' or fouls , at specific points in the game and that the alleged ringleader made 150,000 pounds ( about $ 230,000 ) in the scam . The News of the World has since folded in an unrelated scandal . But Horne praised the newspaper 's work , saying it was `` unlikely '' the corruption would have been exposed without `` the good work of investigative journalism ; and as an investigator I acknowledge the skill involved in such work . '' Prosecutors used audio and video recordings the newspaper made secretly last year involving Majeed , a 36-year-old businessman from London . In one , Majeed is heard telling an unknown contact it is `` not a problem '' to fix the result of a match , adding : `` Boss , you know how many [ players ] I have got , you know that they do it . '' The jury also heard a series of audio and video recordings of conversations and meetings between Majeed and a reporter from the newspaper , who was posing as a rich Indian businessman . One of the recordings showed the reporter handing over $ 140,000 in a London hotel room that had been fitted with secret cameras . Majeed is heard to give the reporter precise details of events in the match , due to start the following day , that would be rigged by the Pakistani players . Specifically , he describes three no-balls -- illegal deliveries -- that the Pakistani bowlers would concede at particular points in the match . The price of fixing a no-ball , Majeed was heard to say , is $ 10,000 ; he went on to tell the undercover reporter that his contact in India made four to five times that amount by betting on no-balls . The jury was then shown extended clips from the Lord 's match , during which the Pakistani bowlers did exactly as Majeed had promised . Before one of the no-balls , the cameras even showed Butt , who was captaining the Pakistani team , consult with Amir , the bowler . Earlier in the trial , the jury was told the betting market in the Asian subcontinent is `` breathtaking in size . '' Conservative estimates , the prosecution said , puts the value of the market at between $ 40 billion to $ 50 billion dollars per year . Alan Peacock , an anti-corruption official at the International Cricket Council , told the court that the betting market had developed over the years from a focus on fixing match results , to spot fixing : contriving small events within the game , like no balls , or particular patterns of scoring . Asif and Butt denied the charges . Majeed was not on trial ; the jury was told there is `` nothing sinister '' about this apparent inconsistency . News International , the parent company of the now-defunct News of the World , said Tuesday 's guilty verdicts were to the credit of its reporter , Mazher Mahmood , who now works for the Sunday Times . `` The convictions secured today are a clear example of where his professional investigative journalism has served the public interest , '' a spokeswoman said in a statement . The International Cricket Council was happy with the outcome , having earlier suspended the trio for periods between five to seven years . `` We hope that this verdict is seen as a further warning to any individual who might , for whatever reason , be tempted to engage in corrupt activity within our sport , '' the ruling body 's chief executive Haroon Lorgat said . `` I am satisfied that we have worked closely with the Crown Prosecution Service and Metropolitan Police throughout this entire process , and I believe that this case has shown that it is possible for criminal authorities and sports bodies to cooperate with each other , in difficult circumstances , in the best interests of the sport and the public at large . '' CNN 's Andrew Carey and Phil Black contributed to this report .
The outcome is a credit to reporting by News of the World , its parent firm says . Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif are guilty of plotting to cheat and take bribes . Mohammad Amir earlier pleaded guilty to the same charges . The Asian betting market is worth up to $ 50B a year , a cricket official estimates .