the young league got off to a difficult start in the decade as a scandal broke with kickers offenbach president horst-gregorio canellas putting forward evidence of players being bribed to affect the outcome of games. allegations were that a number of clubs, including bielefeld, hertha, schalke, and köln, were involved. the scandal caused a disastrous loss of confidence in the bundesliga and game attendance plummeted. investigations by the dfb led to the banning of many players, although most of these sentences were commuted. arminia bielefeld, identified as the club central to the scandal, was stripped of all points they had earned during the 1971–72 season and then relegated to the league below.