Sports betting and corruption: How to preserve the - SportAccord

Sports betting and corruption: How to preserve the integrity of sport
managed to obtain his agreement to take part in a corruption operation. Higgins agreed to lose four
rounds in four different tournaments in exchange for a total of 300,000 24 . In the recording (the scene
was filmed), the player claimed that it was not difficult to lose deliberately, that he only needed to
miss certain shots ... 25 . Cricket is another sport whose image has already been tarnished by several
major scandals (see for example the Hansie Cronjie affair related above). In November 2011, a
number of players in the Pakistani national team were found guilty of having rigged different phases
of a match against England during the summer of 2010 26 . Once again, it was journalists disguised as
corruptors who trapped the Pakistani players. These examples of investigative journalism prove that
even top competitions can be rigged.
As we have seen, the methods used to attack the integrity of sport are many and varied. No sports
discipline is safe from manipulation. Every person involved is a potential way in for corruption. The
influence of a trainer respected by their team, a medical advisor, the important role played by a referee
- all provide possibilities when a person wants to influence the course or outcome of a match. But the
major target of this system is, and remains, sport itself. It is therefore worth taking a short look at the
profile of a typical sportsperson and studying the weaknesses that can make them vulnerable to this
type of criminal enterprise (or not, as the case may be).
Sportspeople and corruption
It is important to understand the characteristics specific to sportspeople that help to explain a certain
vulnerability to corruption.
One distinguishing element relates to their education and environment. A large number of athletes are
trained and live in a closed circle within which their behaviour is predefined and calculated, and where
there is significant pressure from sports management, family, medical advisors and even journalists.
A lack of perspective outside this closed environment can tend to inhibit an athlete s ethical
judgments. How will a high-level athlete react to a request from a person (or group of people) who for
years has devoted their time (and money) to training, coaching, and supporting them in their sporting
and personal life and problems?
In some societies, individuals relate differently to illegality, and corruption in sport is more
widespread than it is elsewhere. It is a fact that in globalised disciplines like football and tennis,
particular attention must for example be paid by the sports authorities to players from Eastern Europe
and the Balkan States.
A second key to understanding lies in the relationship between money and sport. Athletes are in
essence individuals who are extremely familiar with the concept of risk (risk of losing a match or
competition, risk of injury etc.). The excitement, the adrenalin rush from playing sport and competing
can sometimes extend into gambling, and particularly sports betting 27 . In January 2011 a German
24 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/snooker/7989823/John-Higgins-affair-how-the-events-unfolded-in-ex-
world-champions-fight-to-clear-name.html
25 The scene in pictures: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNIZOeyfWtI
26 http://www.liberation.fr/depeches/01012368996-deux-joueurs-pakistanais-de-cricket-reconnus-coupables-de-corruption
27 Interview with the syndicat des joueurs de handball francais (French handball players association), Paris, 30 September
2011
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