Sportradar Integrity Services analyses betting corruption and match-fixing in 2021

The market leader in bet monitoring published a new report that highlights the serious and ongoing threat match-fixing presents to the integrity of global sport at all levels.

Press release.- Sportradar Integrity Services, a global supplier of sport integrity solutions and partner to more than 100 sports federations and leagues, has recently published a new report entitled ‘Betting Corruption and Match-fixing in 2021’.

The report highlights the serious and ongoing threat match-fixing presents to the integrity of global sport at all levels. This comes as the money bet on sport reaches an all-time high.

Sportradar Integrity Services Managing Director, Andreas Krannich, said: “Lower-level competitions in particular are suffering from match-fixing breaches, and the data from 2021 should serve as a stark warning. Once match-fixing has established itself in a certain area, it can spread up to the highest levels of competition.”

Key take outs from the report include: 

• Sportradar detected 903 suspicious matches in 2021 – the highest number of suspicious matches recorded in Sportradar Integrity Services 17 year history.
• In 2021, 65 sanctions were delivered that had been supported by Sportradar Integrity Services data and reports. These comprised of 58 sanctions handed down against individuals and seven against sporting clubs. 
• The increase in suspicious activity rose alongside record levels of global sports betting turnover which Sportradar estimates at more than €1.45tn.
• Approximately €165m was generated in match-fixing betting profit.
• Soccer has the highest frequency of suspicious matches at a rate of one in every 201 fixtures. It is followed by esports with one in every 384 and basketball at one in 498.
• Within soccer, lower-level competitions continue to be significantly affected. 50 per cent of suspicious cases in domestic leagues came from the third tier or lower, including regional leagues and youth soccer. Many of these competitions lack key integrity protections like bet monitoring and athlete education, making them vulnerable targets for match-fixers.

Sportradar Integrity Services is a unit of Sportradar, the leading global sports technology company creating immersive experiences for sports fans across the globe.