Financial Integrity in Sport
Financial integrity and transparency is a cornerstone of good governance. While significant strides have been made in the last decade, there is evidence of room for improvement in some existing systems. SIGA has identified opportunities to support further progress, in order to help sport align itself with improved best practice benchmarks from other organisations.
The Universal Standards on Financial Integrity reflect the concerns and responsibilities of governing bodies, clubs, leagues, competition organisers, athletes and other key stakeholders. They are designed to help meet the significant challenges faced by sport and its stakeholders in many areas, ranging from the ownership of clubs and players to the opaque nature of the transfer system, inadequate club licensing, regulation of the activities of agents, tax evasion, money laundering, corruption in procurement and contracting and in the bidding processes for sports events.
The three pillars of the Universal Standards on Financial Integrity are:
- Transparency and integrity – producing and publicising reliable financial information.
- Financial sustainability – generating value over time through sound management.
- Fiscal responsibility – meeting obligations on tax and social payments.