IBIA: esports overtakes football as biggest source of suspicious betting alerts up 80% in Q2

The total number of global suspicious betting alerts was up by 80 per cent.

UK.- The International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) has reported that there were 90 suspicious betting alerts made to authorities in the second quarter of the year. That’s a rise of 80 per cent compared to the same quarter last year but a decrease of 3 per cent compared to Q1 of 2024.

There was a notable rise in esports, which overtook football as the sport with the highest number of alerts. Esports accounted for around half of all alerts, followed by football and tennis. There were 19 alerts from Europe, including 6 from Poland. That compares to 4 reports from Europe in Q1 of this year and 31 in Q2 2023.

IBIA CEO Khalid Ali said: “An increase in the Q2 and revised Q1 alerts compared to previous quarters is primarily related to a linked case in esports. The situation is being monitored closely and heightened vigilance advocated as we seek to work with stakeholders to investigate. 

“While the increase in alerts may understandably draw attention, it should be noted that esports saw a significant reduction in annual alerts across IBIA’s membership in 2023. The case again highlights the importance and effectiveness of customer account monitoring in the detection of suspicious betting and the protection of sporting events, consumers and regulated betting markets.”

Meanwhile, the IBIA has called on Latin American jurisdictions to copy the new operator licensing framework of Brazil, where interested parties are required to be members of an independent monitoring institution like the IBIA.

In January, the IBIA signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Norwegian Industry Association for Online Gaming (NBO) and added its voice to calls for Norway to open its gambling market.