Did the wide-ranging fallout of the 2013 IPL spot-fixing scandal work as a deterrent against corruption in Indian cricket? Not so, say anti-corruption (ACU) officials in the sport.

These officials say the corruptors now look to target the state leagues as well as lesser known live competitions – smaller in scale and involving more vulnerable players. “We have 50 investigations that we are undertaking and majority have links to corruptors in India,” Steve Richardson, coordinator of investigations, International Cricket Council ACU said in a webinar on Sports Law and Policy on Saturday.

Of late, no high-profile Indian cricketer may have come under the lens, but the player-bookie nexus goes unabated, he said. “Players are the final link in the chain. Problem is with people who organise corruption, who pay the players; who sit outside the sport. I can deliver eight names to Indian governing agencies who are serial offenders and constantly approach the players,” Richardson added.

But for Covid 19 applying the brake on all state leagues, many of them would have been on by now. The Karnataka Premier League (KPL) remains suspended and police investigations are on after some players and a team owner were charged with fixing. “The police has filed partial charge-sheets in KPL matter. We are in the process of examination of that evidence,” BCCI ACU head Ajit Singh said.

“The entire malice emanates from (illegal) betting. Just to make windfall gains illegally through betting, they approach participants (players, support staff, officials, franchise owners) and the amount of money involved is unimaginable – an annual turnover of R30,000-40,000 crore; including sports and other activities. In state leagues, we got betting examined on certain matches and we discovered it comes to the tune of more than 2 million pounds per match,” said Singh.

ACU officials say nothing will change until match-fixing is made a criminal offence in India. “Sri Lanka was the first nation that brought a match-fixing law. For that reason, Sri Lanka cricket is better protected now. In Australia’s case, we are very proactive. At the moment, with no legislation in place in India, they are operating with one hand tied up,” said Richardson.

A robust law would also help protect ICC events better. “In Australia, they can stop someone coming to their country before the tournament. India too has ICC events coming up with the T20 World Cup (2021) and the 2023 ODI World Cup. Legislation would be a game changer.”

Singh said there would be a strong deterrent if the pending Prevention of Sports Fraud bill became law. “Fans put in a huge amount of emotion and this (fixing) happens… It starts at an early stage; those who are in sports betting nurture these players and start using them later for fixing. It needs to be curbed. For that you need a strong law. Currently it is archaic, and some of the conditions are laughable.”

Police have gotten involved in a case of cheating in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. Police charged five Australian players over rigging matches by placing bets on matches that they lost on purpose.

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive has had a recent surge in popularity, and the potential prize money to be won in matches is high. The five offending players reportedly won as much as $30,000 in the rigged matches. They are all scheduled to appear in Victorian court on September 15th of this year.

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The charges were for “use of corrupt conduct information for betting purposes,” with one man being additionally charged with possession of cannabis. This is the first time charges like this have been made in Australia. The charges come from an investigation that led to six CS:GO players being arrested last year.

Cheating is rampant in CS:GO, but until now, no legal action has been taken against offenders. However, FACEIT seems to have a handle on banning cheaters as they are reported. On April 26, FACEIT banned hundreds of players, including popular YouTuber Mefju23. The arrests made in Australia came from an anonymous report from a betting agency, which led to the Victoria police starting an investigation.

Although playing a game with a cheater can be annoying or even ruin the game experience, it usually doesn’t have real-world consequences. $30,000 is a lot of money, and when that amount of cash is involved, it makes sense that the police would step in. As esports grow in popularity, the audience and the money grow with it, and cheating has bigger and more visible consequences. Traditional sports players can get fines or legal consequences from rigging games, so if esports is considered a “real” sport, it should follow the same rules.

Even if the police hadn’t gotten involved, getting banned for cheating or violating terms of service can still be serious. Last year, s1mple, a player many considered to be the best in the game, was banned from Twitch for using a slur against someone. Players as successful as s1mple can lose a lot from getting banned from a streaming service or the game itself. While most cheaters probably won’t have to face a judge, they will at least face the frustrations of fellow players who just want to enjoy the game.

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is available now for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360.

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Source: Kotaku

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The first match-fixing case in Australian esports has led to some serious consequences. Five men between 20 and 27 years old are facing charges that carry maximum penalties of up to 10 years in jail. The charges stem from allegations of winning $30,000 by betting on fixed Counter-Strike: Global Offensive matches last March.

In August, the Victorian police issued a statement on the matter, noting that a betting agency had tipped off officers about players who were “arranging to throw” five matches during the Mountain Dew League in order to benefit from bets they’d placed. 

A 20-year-old from Mill Park in Melbourne has been charged with two counts of engaging in conduct that corrupts or would corrupt a betting outcome, along with two counts of using corrupt conduct information for betting purposes. He was also charged with the possession of cannabis. Two other 20-year-old players from the same area, along with a 20-year-old from South Morang, were charged with three counts of using corrupt conduct information for betting purposes. The fifth man is a 27-year-old from Sale, who was charged with a whopping five counts of using corrupt conduct information for betting purposes. 

All five men will face court in Melbourne and Sale in September. 

A sixth man was arrested in August 2019, but it’s unclear why they were not charged with anything at this time. No names were released. 

CSGO match fixing is a serious crime

According to the original reporting, all five of the players involved in the match fixing had gone to the same high school and university. They were all from “normal suburban Melbourne families” and had no prior wrongdoing on their records. 

“We’ve got young men, typically 19 or 20-year-olds, who have no history with police,” assistant commisioner Neil Paterson stated. “They’re getting involved in [corruption] offenses at quite a young age that have serious consequences for them.” 

For Paterson, the number of young men involved in esports gambling, and gambling in general, has been a problem. He noted that he feels nothing is really being done to crack down on this spreading problem with young men in the area. 

Brazilian tennis player Joao Souza has been slapped with a lifetime ban by the Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU).  He has been charged with multiple match-fixing and corruption offences.

In addition to the ban, a ban of $200,000 has also been imposed upon the Brazilian player.

What Has Joao Souza Been Charged For?

TIU conducted an investigation on the match-fixing allegations against Souza from the time period between 2015 and 2019. The said investigation established conclusively that Souza indulged in numerous breaches of the Tennis anti-corruption programme (TACP).

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These included repeated incidents of match-fixing at ATP challenger and ITF Futures tournaments which were held in Brazil, Mexico, The United States and the Czech Republic.

What Were The Other Charges On Souza?

However, this wasn’t all that Souza has been charged for. There are other serious allegations on the player.

TIU investigation has convicted him for three more offences. Firstly, he’s accused of failing to report his corrupt approaches.

Secondarily, he has failed to cooperate in the investigation conducted by TIU. This includes the extremely serious charge of destroying evidence. Thirdly, he has also been charged with motivating other players to underperform.

The case against Souza was heard by an anti-corruption hearing officer of the TIU named Prof Richard H. Mclaren. The disciplinary hearing against him was heard in London on 14 January 2020.

For those interested in understanding the implications of the ban, Joao Souza will be prevented from any sanctioned organized by any governing body in tennis.

Joao Souza hasn’t had much success as a tennis player. The Brazilian has reached as high as No 69 in the ATP men’s singles rankings. While in the doubles category, he has reached as high as no 70.

Currently, the player was ranked No 742 in ATP singles rankings.

What Is The Tennis Integrity Unit?

The Tennis Integrity Unit is the anti-corruption body responsible for enforcing zero tolerance to betting-related corruption. It is operationally independent and based in London.

However, it is jointly funded by the seven biggest stakeholders in tennis- International Tennis Federation, ATP, WTA, Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open.

The action by the TIU is commendable for the purpose of a sanitized sport in the future.

One-time Hong Kong footballer of the Year Lee Wai-lim yesterday admitted pocketing HK$60,000 to fix two matches.

He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud and to bribery charges before District Court judge Frankie Yiu Fun-che, who allowed him bail.

Lee, who coached Hong Kong Pegasus Football Club’s reserve team, had “signaled” a fix was set to players by making gestures such as pulling up the hood of his jacket during a game.

Lee, 36, was charged along with four former Pegasus players who pleaded not guilty from one to seven counts of bribery and defrauding in the HK$60,000 fixing of three matches in 2016.

The four players – Kwok Kin-pong, 30, Michael Cheng Lai-hin, 31, Chan Pak-hang, 24, and Lee Ka-ho, 24 – have also been allowed bail during a trial set to run for 10 days. They allegedly were involves with bribes in Hong Kong Football Association Reserve Division League games.

The two matches Lee admitted fixing were between Pegasus and Biu Chun Rangers FC on March 23 and April 13, 2016.

The court was told that five minutes before the first game started Pegasus player Wong Wai received instructions from Lee.

“You should not score any goal in the first 15 minutes,” Lee said. “Then I will pull up on the hood of my jacket and you should try to score.”

While Wong played said he played “as usual,” he said Lee Ka-ho scored an own goal – Wong reckoned it was a “deliberate” act – as Pegasus lost 6-2.

The following day, Liu Songwei, a former Rangers player, allegedly handed a black plastic bag to Cheng.

Under caution, Lee said Liu had told him to fix the match and he would be rewarded.

And for the April match Wong was instructed by Lee to lose for a reward that would be “one and a half.” Wong understood that to mean HK$15,000.

Wu Chun-ming, another Pegasus player and witness, claimed defendant Chan warned him they “must lose” or else others “would suffer.” Pegasus won that match 1-0, and Wong said he had to pay out HK$10,000 to Lee.

Lee played for the Hong Kong team and was crowned the SAR’s footballer of the year for 2009.

Pegasus is chaired by author, singer and businesswoman Canny Leung Chi-shan, who is set to be a witness.

The hearing continues today.