In an exclusive interview with G&M News, André Megale, Director of Good Governance and Integrity at SIGA LATIN AMERICA, reflects on the growing risks to sports integrity arising from match-fixing in the context of the expansion of regulated sports betting in Brazil. He examines existing vulnerabilities in the sports ecosystem, stresses the importance of education, effective regulation and technological monitoring, and underscores the role of institutional cooperation and enforcement in safeguarding the credibility of competitions across Latin America.
Click to read the Interview by Tatiana Martins, journalist at G&M News, in Portuguese.
In this interview, the Director of Integrity and Governance at SIGA LATIN AMERICA reflects on the growing risks of match-fixing in the context of the expansion of regulated sports betting in Brazil. He highlights institutional cooperation, data monitoring and the seriousness of authorities in applying appropriate sanctions as key tools to protect the integrity of sport in Latin America and preserve the credibility of competitions.
As it enters its ninth year, SIGA remains focused on expanding its actions, empowering stakeholders, and ensuring that integrity, transparency and accountability remain central pillars of modern sport.
Match-fixing remains one of the biggest challenges to sports integrity. In your view, what are today the main loopholes exploited by those who try to circumvent the system?
I understand it as a combination of factors. Match-fixing is one of the most harmful aspects to the integrity and credibility of sport, whose main pillar is unpredictability—not only of results, but also of the many events that make up a match. Unfortunately, attempts to manipulate results have always existed in sport for various purposes, including sporting ones. Today, however, they are strongly driven by the sports betting market, as manipulators of events or results can profit greatly from bets aligned with the manipulation and therefore illegal. In Brazil, we now have a very recent regulated sports betting environment, both in terms of legislative development itself and in the coordination of the regulator, across its various levels, to supervise the market and combat illicit acts. In addition, we have a very broad and complex sports market, with numerous vulnerabilities, especially among athletes, the vast majority of whom are poorly paid or not paid at all, and still not prepared to understand and act in compliance with regulation, making them easier targets for agents infiltrated in sport who aim to manipulate results.
How can cooperation between sports entities, betting operators and public authorities be strengthened in Latin America?
This cooperation, which is fundamental to combating organized crime that has identified an opportunity in the illicit activity of match-fixing and illegal betting, will only be strengthened through constant dialogue among these entities, fostered by events, symposiums and coordination mechanisms for supervision and the punishment of those responsible. Regulation and self-regulation acting together are key to preserving the values of sport and ensuring the protection and transparency of stakeholders and of the resources derived from sports betting activity, excluding and punishing those who attempt to use this market to carry out criminal acts.
In recent years, cases of manipulation involving young athletes have gained prominence. How can entities improve education and prevention at youth levels?
Proper athlete education, which must begin at grassroots level, requires joint action by confederations, federations and clubs, which should create solid and lasting programmes with continuous refresher training. We need to rely on the expertise of integrity and education organisations specialised in this field, such as SIGA, which understand the most effective methodologies and bring examples of success from other countries that are more advanced in these areas.
Technology has been pointed out as an ally in the fight against manipulation. Which tools do you consider most promising for detecting suspicious behaviour?
To prevent manipulation itself, technologies should be used that detect atypical patterns in athletes’ behaviour, helping to identify actions and reactions that are not natural and may be associated with the manipulation of events or results. In the field of sports betting, one of the main drivers of sports manipulation, technology must be used to prevent illegal betting. This requires technology that applies algorithms to identify atypical betting patterns compared to regular market behaviour, bets misaligned with the bettor’s profile or history, or unusual concentrations of bets by bettor, region or competition, among others.
With the expansion of the regulated betting market in the region, how can economic growth be ensured without compromising the integrity of competitions?
This question summarises the points raised in the previous answers. Only by combating manipulation and illegal betting—both to prevent incidents in advance and to apply appropriate sanctions afterwards—through the necessary collaboration among regulatory and self-regulatory bodies, will sport be able to maintain its integrity and credibility. In this way, the betting market will develop while minimising its negative effects, including problem gambling, and fostering its positive effects, such as job creation and funding for sport.
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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.
To contact SIGA, please email: comms@siga-sport.com.