As the Australian Open began last week BuzzFeed News and the BBC published details of an investigation into widespread match fixing by international organized crime.
The joint report claims to have uncovered evidence of rigging of major tennis tournaments, including the venerable Wimbledon. Russian and Italian mob syndicates are the culprits, says the report with top players being offered $50,000 per game.
The report cites law enforcement authorities that say that a group of 16 players, among the top ranked 50 as being the core group of crooked players. More than half of them are playing in the Australian Open.
The evidence included leaked internal documents and analysis of betting on thousands of tennis matches.
World tennis authorities were first given information about the core group in 2008 after which an investigation was launched. The players accused, Russia’s Nikolay Davydenko and Argentina’s Martin Vassallo Arguello were cleared of any wrongdoing.
BuzzFeed and the BBC claim to have obtained text messages between Arguello and a suspected Italian mobster.
The Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and Tennis Integrity Unit denies having hidden or overlooking evidence.
In 2014 a man was arrested at the Australian Open for alleged betting courtside.
Dr. Charles Livingstone of Monash University, a gaming expert told the Sydney Morning Herald, “The reality is that it’s as inevitable as doping in sport, unfortunately. They players can be detected, but what we’ve got here is the people that have popped up enough.
“When you’ve got two players who are relatively close in ranking and you’ve got a smarter gambling operator, then they’re going to be able to pull that stuff off time, after time, after time,” said Livingstone.
The accusations come as a major gambling company, William Hill, is advertising on the Australian Open’s courts.
No. 2 Ranked Andy Murray says this is hypocritical. Murray and other players say that authorities should do more to fight the problem.
No. 1 ranked Novak Djokovic said, “It’s a fine line. Honestly, it’s on a borderline, I would say. Whether you want to have betting companies involved in the big tournaments in our sport or not, it’s hard to say what’s right and what’s wrong.”
ATP Chairman Chris Kermode defends betting on sports. “The distinction to make is that betting itself is not an illegal pastime and many people do bet on sport. What we are talking about is corruption,” he told a news conference last week.
He said the ATP investigates all allegations of game fixing and sanctions players when it finds evidence. “You can have lots of information, lots of anecdotal reports, but it’s about getting evidence that we can use,” he said.
Player Roger Federer said he wants actual names. He told the Seattle Times, “I would love to hear names. Then at least it’s concrete stuff and you can actually debate about it. Was it the player? Was it the support team? Who was it? Was it before? Was it a doubles player, a singles player? Which Slam?”
He added, “It’s super serious and it’s super important to maintain the integrity of our sport. So how high up does it go? The higher it goes, the more surprised I would be.”
Commenting on the match fixing allegations Djokovic said, “We have, I think, a sport that has evolved and upgraded our programs and authorities to deal with these particular cases,” he said. “There’s no real proof or evidence yet of any active players (being involved in match-fixing), for that matter. As long as it’s like that, it’s just speculation.”
The gaming advertisements seen in the Australian Open’s three major arenas are the first time that such ads have appeared.
American Gaming Association (AGA) President and CEO Geoff Freeman released a statement last week. “Gaming companies provide a mainstream, legal form of entertainment and should be treated like every other business, including with sponsorship opportunities at major events like the Australian Open,” he says. “Instead of jeopardizing the integrity of sports, legal gaming companies around the globe work closely with sports leagues and law enforcement to crack down on corruption, which runs rampant in the illegal betting market, and enhance the integrity of matches and games.”
He added, “AGA is dedicated to exposing and eliminating widespread, dangerous illegal gambling, and we will continue to educate stakeholders and the public about the important role gaming companies play to help ensure the integrity of tennis and all sports.”
