Black Sox Scandal (1919)

Eight Chicago White Sox players accepted $100,000 in total — roughly $1.8 million today — from gamblers to intentionally lose the 1919 World Series to the Cincinnati Reds. The fix stood at 5 games to 3, with star hitter Shoeless Joe Jackson batting a suspicious .375 but committing uncharacteristic errors. Although players were acquitted in court, newly appointed Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis banned all eight from baseball for life, a ruling that cost Jackson a $10,000 contract. This scandal's damage rate exceeds #1 in fan trust erosion: baseball attendance plummeted 20% from 1919 to 1921, as polls showed 65% of fans believed games were rigged.