As Sport Integrity Action Month brings the global Sport community together, SIGA’s 4 Questions 4 Leaders gives a voice to the people and organisations committed to driving meaningful change.
Four questions. Fourt leaders. Four perspectives. One shared commitment to Sport Integrity.
A platform for SIGA Members and Committed Supporters. A space to share insights, challenge perspectives and inspire action. A contribution to the global conversation on Sport Integrity — throughout a month dedicated to turning shared values into meaningful action.
Donna Goldsworthy
Partner, Fieldfisher LLP London; Vice-Chair, SIGA Ethics Committee
I consider the greatest threat to Sport Integrity today to be the manipulation of competition, particularly where it is linked to the growth of global betting. Sport ultimately depends on trust: athletes, fans, sponsors and broadcasters need to believe that competition is genuine and fair. Because betting and organised manipulation operate across borders, no single Sport or country can tackle the problem alone. Protecting integrity should therefore be a global priority, requiring cooperation, intelligence sharing, strong education and effective enforcement to preserve confidence in Sport.
Francisco Melo
Business Manager, Nimber; SIGA Youth Ambassador
I think it’s the rapid growth of sports betting, especially online and in-play markets, that poses the greatest threat to sport integrity. The sheer volume of micro-bets creates endless opportunities for match-fixing, particularly in lower leagues and youth competitions where athletes are poorly paid and vulnerable. When outcomes can be bought, sport loses its unpredictability and meaning. Addressing this must be a global priority to protect fans’ trust, athletes’ welfare and the social value of sport.
Susana Feitor
Olympian; President, Fundação do Desporto (Portuguese Sport Foundation)
One of the greatest threats is the gap between the values sport promotes and the way organisations are governed. This can create opportunities for corruption, abuse of power, discrimination and conflicts of interest. As a former Olympic athlete and sports leader, I believe integrity means protecting athletes, ensuring fairness and safeguarding public trust. Without it, sport risks losing its credibility and its capacity to inspire and generate positive social impact.
Tiago Horta Barbosa
Head of Integrity Latin America, Genius Sports
I consider organised crime the greatest threat to sport integrity. Criminal groups use sport to profit from match-fixing and illegal betting, launder money, gain influence and build legitimacy, exploiting weak governance and limited enforcement. They threaten athletes, fair competition and public trust. Governments, sports bodies and private entities must prioritise collaboration, sharing intelligence and coordinating prevention, investigations and enforcement across borders.
Donna Goldsworthy
Partner, Fieldfisher LLP London; Vice-Chair, SIGA Ethics Committee
Genuine leadership on Sport Integrity is about doing the right thing, not simply saying the right thing. It means setting high standards, being transparent and accountable, and creating a culture where people feel able to speak up and challenge poor conduct. The real test of leadership is whether an organisation is prepared to stand by those principles when doing so is difficult, uncomfortable or comes at a cost.
Francisco Melo
Business Manager, Nimber; SIGA Youth Ambassador
Genuine leadership means investing in the next generation before problems arise. Organisations show their commitment by embedding integrity education in youth academies and school sport programmes, teaching young athletes about match-fixing, betting risks and how to report approaches safely. They must also involve young people in decision-making.
Susana Feitor
Olympian; President, Fundação do Desporto (Portuguese Sport Foundation)
Genuine leadership means leading by example and ensuring that decisions reflect declared values. Organisations must translate commitments into action through transparent governance, clear ethical standards, safe reporting mechanisms and measurable objectives. Policies alone are not enough: their effectiveness must be assessed and leaders held accountable. Integrity must become part of an organisation’s culture, shaping everyday decisions and behaviours at every level.
Tiago Horta Barbosa
Head of Integrity Latin America, Genius Sports
Genuine leadership means making integrity a permanent responsibility, with dedicated staff, budgets, clear accountability and measurable goals. Sports organisations demonstrate commitment through continuous education, protected reporting channels, response protocols, independent investigations and consistent sanctions. An annual lecture or a code of ethics is insufficient. The real test comes when protecting integrity requires leaders to put sports in first place and act against their own interests when required.
Donna Goldsworthy
Partner, Fieldfisher LLP London; Vice-Chair, SIGA Ethics Committee
I do not believe Sport can maintain trust in the long term without meaningful independent scrutiny. Greater transparency and accountability are essential, supported by independent organisations such as SIGA that can help set clear benchmarks for good governance and integrity. Independent scrutiny should not be seen as a threat to Sport, but as a way of strengthening it, protecting its reputation and ensuring that the trust of fans, athletes, sponsors and wider society is earned and maintained.
Francisco Melo
Business Manager, Nimber; SIGA Youth Ambassador
Absolutely not. Without independent scrutiny, trust erodes, because sport ends up marking its own homework. That is why SIGA’s role is so important, and why tools like the SIRVS matter: they provide objective, evidence-based assessment of governance and make progress measurable. Independent review must be seen as a strength, not a threat.
Susana Feitor
Olympian; President, Fundação do Desporto (Portuguese Sport Foundation)
Sport cannot sustain public trust through self-declared commitments alone. Independent scrutiny provides credible evidence, identifies weaknesses and strengthens accountability. Sports organisations must embrace external assessment as an opportunity to improve, not a threat to their autonomy. Greater transparency, regular independent evaluations and effective follow-up are essential. Trust is not built by claiming to be trustworthy, but by accepting scrutiny and demonstrating continuous progress.
Tiago Horta Barbosa
Head of Integrity Latin America, Genius Sports
Sport cannot sustain trust without independent scrutiny of its governance. Oversight bodies need access to information, authority to investigate and freedom from political or commercial interference. Sports organisations must publish financial accounts, explain decisions, protect whistleblowers and hold leaders accountable. Reviews must be regular, findings public and failures followed by corrective action and consistent sanctions, regardless of status. Autonomy must come with transparency and accountability.
Donna Goldsworthy
Partner, Fieldfisher LLP London; Vice-Chair, SIGA Ethics Committee
If I could introduce one measure, it would be a globally recognised independent Sport Integrity standard, with organisations regularly assessed against clear benchmarks for governance, transparency and accountability. Supported by independent bodies such as SIGA, it would turn integrity from an aspiration into something measurable, create greater consistency across Sports and jurisdictions, identify weaknesses earlier and, ultimately, build greater trust in how Sport is governed.
Francisco Melo
Business Manager, Nimber; SIGA Youth Ambassador
I would create a global platform where young athletes, volunteers and ambassadors help shape integrity policies alongside federations, with organisations like SIGA contributing expertise and guidance. Giving young people a real seat at the table builds ownership, not just awareness. I’d expect stronger trust in integrity rules, earlier detection of the risks young people actually face, and a new generation of leaders who grow up seeing integrity as a core value of sport.
Susana Feitor
Olympian; President, Fundação do Desporto (Portuguese Sport Foundation)
I would introduce a universal requirement for sports organisations to undergo regular, independent governance assessments based on recognised standards. These should cover transparency, accountability, conflicts of interest, safeguarding and athletes’ rights, leading to measurable improvement plans and follow-up.
This would shift sport from declarations to evidence and accountability, strengthen governance and help ensure that fair competition, ethical leadership and respect for human dignity are non-negotiable.
Tiago Horta Barbosa
Head of Integrity Latin America, Genius Sports
I would require sports organisations to allocate a dedicated annual budget to governance tools and qualified integrity professionals. This investment should support risk assessments, transparent decisions, protected reporting channels and clear response protocols, led by permanent teams with the expertise and authority to act. I would expect earlier identification of risks, more effective responses to incidents and stronger accountability, making integrity part of everyday management.
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ABOUT SIGA
SIGA is the world’s leading organisation for Sport Integrity. We are creating a whole new landscape for the sports industry by delivering independent global rating and certification for world Sport to ensure it is governed and operates under the highest integrity standards: The SIGA Universal Standards.
Funded by our Members, SIGA is a non for profit global independent organisation with one aim: To ensure the sport industry is governed under the highest integrity standards so that the values of sport are protected.
SIGA is the only organisation to bring together sport, governments, academia, international organisations, sponsors, business, rights holders, NGOs and professional services companies, from every region in the world, around a common cause of fostering greater integrity throughout sport.
SIGA is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, as a non for-profit association, and comprises of the following continental subsidiaries: SIGA AMERICA, SIGA EUROPE and SIGA LATIN AMERICA.
For more information on SIGA, including its vision, mission and reform agenda, please refer to the website: www.siga-sport.com and FAQs.
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