Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Licence needed for work use Learn More

World Video | Defence | Foreign Affairs | Natural Events | Trade | NZ in World News | NZ National News Video | NZ Regional News | Search

 

Illegal Bets Add Up To 1.7 Trillion Dollars Each Year: New UN Report

Up to $1.7 trillion is estimated to be wagered on illicit betting markets each year, according to a new report released on Thursday by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

The publication, the first-ever Global Report on Corruption in Sport, asks for an urgent, unified and international response to fight malpractice and fraud across the sector. The ground-breaking new report was issued to coincide with International Anti-Corruption Day, marked each 9 December.

According to the UN Agency, it reveals a “staggering scale, manifestation, and complexity of corruption and organized crime in sport at the global, regional, and national levels.”

‘Substantial increase’

Developed in partnership with nearly 200 experts from across government, sports’ organizations, the private sector, and academia, the report is the most in-depth review of its type to date.

The report also analyzes the role of illegal betting and competition manipulation, by Unsplash/Anastasiia Chepinska

It notes that corruption in sports is not a new phenomenon, since fraudulent activities have existed since the ancient Olympic Games, but points to a “substantial increase” in the past two decades.

Globalization, a huge influx of money, the rapid growth of legal and illegal sports betting, and technological advances, are making it increasingly attractive to criminal networks seeking to exploit sport for profit, it says.

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

The report also analyzes the role of illegal betting, competition manipulation, abuse, the susceptibility of major sporting events to fraudsters, and the involvement of organized crime, among others.

Finally, it highlights initiatives that can help tackle the problem, issues related to detecting and reporting wrongdoing, and how existing legal frameworks can be used to address the problem.

Concrete policies

The report includes a playbook with concrete policy considerations, for both governments and sports organizations.

It asks for legal, policy and institutional frameworks to be strengthened, comprehensive anti-corruption policies to be implemented, and more cooperation and exchange of information among sport organizations, crime prevention and criminal justice authorities and policymakers

The report is launched ahead of next week’s biennial UN anti-corruption gathering, the Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Convention against Corruption, being held in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt from 13 to 17 December.

© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
World Headlines

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.