Football competes with tennis as the sports with the highest number of suspicions of manipulation.
Between 2017 and 2022, IBIA issued 1,200 alerts. Half of them refer to tennis. In this modality, considered the reference in the fight against manipulation, there is an integrity institute that analyzes the cases.
In 2023, in the first semester alone, the number was reversed. There were 40 alerts in total, 15 for football and 12 for tennis. And of these 15, four are from Brazil. Despite the high number, it represents a 20% drop compared to the last quarter of 2022.
The country also leads in suspicion rates compared to its South American neighbors. Since 2018, there have been 33 issues, against nine in Argentina and Peru. According to the association, 91% of alerts are issued on bets in the so-called primary markets (win, draw and defeat). Only 9% are guesses on cards, corners, fouls, etc. This is because these smaller markets do not allow for large bet amounts.
IBIA is considered to be the north when it comes to integrity for the betting industry. It is a non-profit company whose members are the main operators, the biggest bookmakers in the world. Therefore, its alerts are more restricted and in-depth. Its services are shared with FIFA, UEFA, the International Olympic Committee and other sports organizations.
The difference to other companies that provide these activities is precisely the fact that it is not a corporation and is not for profit. Broadly speaking, it is a network of information from the houses themselves. Their reports are issued and then investigated by the relevant authorities. Other companies that provide a similar service, such as companies that work for federations and confederations, are private, collecting different data from other sources.
IBIA tracking is based on strange movements on websites. Over-value bets or high volume of guesses generate a trigger in the monitoring algorithm. As the work is directly with the houses, they have access to the IPs from which the bets were placed and also the identification of each user, which facilitates the search and can speed up the investigation.
"This is a difference to trading monitoring systems, which tend to be more focused on simple probability movements," explains Khalid Ali.
The monitoring service is considered essential for the regulation of sports betting in Brazil, one of the main debates at the moment in Brasília. There have already been talks, and Khalid should return to the country to discuss the issue with Congress.
"We talk a lot about the issue of fees, but it is essential to address integrity. Create education systems for sports agents, such as athletes and coaches, especially when they are young. And also fight misinformation, such as people who promise wealth in a month on the market bets. That doesn't exist," concludes Khalid.
It is estimated that, per year, bookmakers are damaged by US$ 25 million in match fixing.
Source: GZH
