For investigators, suspicion of manipulation refers to various types of irregular attitudes during games: forcing a card, giving up a throw-in, forcing a substitution (all of this can be subject to betting). It's not necessarily losing a game on purpose.
Sportradar is a multinational, based in Switzerland, that develops technologies to help federations identify sports fraud.
All values listed by the company are in euros and were updated by the General Price Index — Market (IGP-M) for the period.
The CPI had access to reports of 142 football matches held in Brazil between 2022 and 2023. Sportradar pointed out that the R$9.2 million (US$ 1.7m), invested in betting houses, was distributed over 52 games.
On average, each of the matches reported by the company generated R$176,000 (US$ 32,300) in bets, in updated values.
g1 asked the National Association of Games and Lotteries (ANJL) whether there is an average value of bets that are placed on football games taking place in Brazil, but they said it was "impossible" to define this data.
"It is impossible to define an average value per match because the discrepancy is very large. We have matches that actually move much higher numbers than regular matches and matches that move much less. At the same time, different operators promote different odds for that match. Thus, in a unregulated market, it is impossible to reach this level of detail," stated the ANJL.
The Ministry of Finance reported that only in 2025 will it have data relating to sports betting carried out in Brazil.
"As the country is in the midst of the process of regulating and authorizing betting operators, effective data related to values ??are not yet available. Four ordinances have already been published, including Ordinance SPA/MF nº 722, of 02 of May, 2024, which provides for a Betting System, managed by the Prizes and Betting Secretariat of the Ministry of Finance. Through this System, it will be possible for the regulatory body to have access to all data, both operators and bettors. , regarding values, access times, etc.," informed Finance.
"The authorization process began with Ordinance SPA/MF nº 827, of May 21, 2024, providing that the transition period determined by the Law will end on December 31, 2024. Thus, the regulator will start charging the full compliance with Laws and regulations, from January 1, 2025, when such data will be available, for the control of regulated activities in the sector," added the Ministry.
Championships
The matches highlighted by Sportradar are from the Brazilian championships in series B, C and D, Copa Verde and professional and under-20 state championships.
The last round of series B in 2022, the game between Operário Ferroviário (PR) and Grêmio Novorizontino (SP), ensuring the São Paulo club's stay in series B, was the one that generated the most bets among those related. In total, R$1.37 million (US$ 251,000) was bet, most of it, on Grêmio Novorizontino's victory.
"There were suspicious pre-match bets registered at bookmakers with monitored accounts in favor of Grêmio Novorizontino winning the first half with at least two goals scored in the first half," the Sportradar report stated.
Among the factors that generated suspicions of the company are:
- seven changes to the line-up of the Operário Ferroviário starting team in relation to the previous match;
- Grêmio Novorizontino not winning 2-0 in the first half in six of the last seven games they played;
- volume of bets greater than those presented in the most popular football markets;
- 15% of monitored bookmakers suspended the possibility of pre-game bets on Novorizontino's victory in the first half;
- Novorizontino's second goal was scored in first-half stoppage time, after Operário's defender committed a penalty.
"These betting patterns are suspicious and cannot under any circumstances be explained by logical sporting factors, clearly demonstrating that bettors paid significantly greater attention to these specific results," Sportradar pointed out.
The second match that generated the most bets was between Sapucaiense x Igrejinha in series B of the Gaucho championship, in October 2023.
The match received at least R$1 million (US$ 184,000) in bets against Sapucaiense and, at the beginning of the game, while the match was 0-0, several bets were registered that the home team would lose 0-5. The final score was 1x2.
"Although the match ended with a score of 1:2 – making most strong bets unsuccessful – there are elements of suspicion in the betting markets. Current betting patterns and supporting information provide indications that GE Sapucaiense may be involved in the potential manipulation of this match," the report stated.
On the other hand, a match for the seventh round of the 2022 Amapaense Championship, between Ypiranga x São Paulo, raised just R$6,800 (US$ 1,248) and was identified with "clear and indisputable" evidence of manipulation of the result.
At the time, São Paulo was in last place in the championship, without any points scored and, even so, 88% of bets were in favor of the team's victory. The match ended with Ypiranga losing 4-3.
"Current betting patterns and supporting information provide indications that Ypiranga was potentially complicit in the manipulation of this game," it pointed out.
Financial losses
In addition to the data relating to the movement of bets on suspicious matches, Sportradar also carried out a survey of the losses that bookmakers incurred with nine matches.
In total, there were R$4.85 million (US$ 890,000) in losses. Four of the matches were in series C of the Brazilian Championship, another three in series B and one in the Carioca Under-20 Championship and another in the Pernambucano Championship of Series A2.
The match that generated the most losses, as well as the one that generated the most money, was between Operário Ferroviário and Grêmio Novorizontino, in the last round of the Brazilian Series B Championship. In total, the bookmakers lost R$1.67 million (US$ 306,000).
The second game that caused the most losses was between Angra dos Reis and Rio de Janeiro, for the Carioca Under-20 Championship, in July 2023. The match generated R$ 227,000 (US$ 41,600) and caused a loss of R$ 745,900 (US$ 137,000).
"This match contains elements that raise concerns from the perspective of integrity," analyzed Sportradar.
According to the Swiss company's report, 40% of bets were for Angra dos Reis to win by three, four or five goals.
By the end of the second half, the game was 2-1 for Angra. In the 61st minute, Rio de Janeiro had a penalty missed and in the 75th minute, a player from the visiting team was sent off. In the final minutes, Angra ended up scoring three goals and the match ended 5-1 for the home team.
The Sportradar report also points out that the "game was not very offensive," as Angra only shot five times at the opponent's goal in the entire second half.
"It is therefore clear that the match events unfolding on the field were not the driving influence behind this highly suspicious betting behavior," the report noted.
Tombense, from Minas Gerais, the target of investigation by the Public Ministry of Goiás (MPGO) in the Maximum Penalty operation, on suspicion of manipulation, appears in the Sportradar report with two games from Series B of the Brazilian Championship that together, generated R$ 433,000 (US$ 79,400).
In the first match, valid for the last round of the championship, in which the two teams had no more chances of going up or falling, the company identified that 99% (R$ 401,000 / US$ 73,500) of the bets were for Criciúma to win the first time.
Subsequently, MPGO investigations showed that a group involved in game manipulation offered €27,000 to Tombense players to commit a penalty in the first half, which ended up happening, in the 32nd minute, made by the player Joseph.
In the following season, the same Tombense had a game in the 7th round of the Brazilian Series B Championship flagged as suspicious after the betting house Betano reported that six hours before the start of the match, the betting market received R$ 32,000 (US$ 5,870) in bets that the Minas Gerais team would have the largest number of cards in the game. The match caused a loss of R$73,000 (US$ 13,400) for bookmakers.
"Betting for this outcome occurred in pre-game markets and primarily on Brazilian accounts. Betano indicated that the majority of these accounts were from the same region as the event referee, which caused integrity concerns about the betting activity witnessed in the cards mentioned," the report pointed out.
Operation Fair Play
Two weeks ago, the Federal Police carried out Operation Jogo Limpo to investigate possible manipulation of results in a match in series D of the Brazilian Championship, between Inter de Limeira and Patrocinense, which took place on June 1st of this year.
The operation came about after the CBF forwarded the Sportradar report with a list of suspected manipulation matches to the Federal Police.
According to the PF, there is evidence that bettors had "prior knowledge that a certain team would lose the first half of the match by at least two goals."
Source: g1
