ASIA: A recent report from the Sportradar Integrity Services has shown a considerable decrease in match-fixing incidents across global sports in 2024, yet Asia continues to be a central area of concern for such issues.
The Integrity in Action: 2024 Global Analysis & Trends report reveals a considerable reduction in the number of suspicious match detections worldwide; however, it paints a mixed picture of the sports landscape in Asia.
Report results
In 2024, Sportradar tracked more than 850,000 matches across 70 sports, uncovering 1,108 suspicious matches that marked a 17% decline from the previous year.
Regionally, Europe reported the most suspicious matches with 439, followed by Asia with 310, and South America with 245.
While Europe, usually the hardest-hit region, saw a big drop of 229 matches, Asia experienced a different trend. Sportradar found that Asia is still a key area for match-fixing issues, with an increase of eight cases compared to last year.
The rise is different from the global 17% drop in suspicious match activity, showing the unique challenges that Asia faces in fighting sports corruption.
Most affected sports
Soccer (or football) continues to be the most affected sport, making up 65% of all suspicious matches worldwide. Basketball comes second most impacted by match-fixing.
Moreover, in Asia, these two sports remained the top targets for suspicious activity, reflecting their popularity as betting options on the continent.
Throughout the year, Sportradar teamed up with important partners in Asia, like the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), to help keep events like the AFC Asian Cup 2023 fair. They offered services like real-time monitoring of betting markets and intelligence analysis to prevent manipulation.
In a notable case, Sportradar helped the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) in the Philippines, resulting in lifetime bans for 47 players and team officials involved in match-fixing.
Sports such as table tennis and eSports also saw significant reductions in suspicious activity.
Other results from the report
There is still a gender gap in match-fixing, with far more suspicious matches found in men’s events (1,057) compared to women’s events (51).
Despite the global decrease in suspicious matches, Andreas Krannich, Executive Vice President at Sportradar, emphasized the need to remain watchful. He stated: “The reduction in suspicious matches gives us reason to be optimistic, but it also underscores the need for ongoing vigilance and innovation, as the number remains significant.”
Overall, Asia’s continued presence in global statistics shows the need for more strategies specific to the region and better cooperation between sports groups, betting operators, and law enforcement as match-fixing networks evolve.