Chris Eaton, executive director of the International Centre for Sport Security (ICSS), has said that the professional sports industry needs more protection from the threat of illegal betting.
Speaking to the AFP agency, Eaton warned that if more is not done to combat such illegal activities, then the sports industry will be hit harder over the coming years.
Eaton gave the example of the English Premier League club football competition, stating that the vast majority of the €1 billion ($1.1 billion) globally gambled on each match constitutes illegal betting.
He added that as much as 80% of the amount wagered in each game is suspect, although there is no suggestion that such betting activities impact the result of the matches.
“Sport will not survive 10 more years of this,” Eaton said.
“If governments don’t intervene in a collective, global and universal way on the issue of betting fraud-based match-fixing, then sport will continue to suffer significant credibility problems.”
“Governments are not reacting. Governments are still looking for sport to cure its own problem or some miraculous silver bullet.”
source : www.igamingbusiness.com
