IBIA shows a continued reduction in tennis suspicious betting alerts

The International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA), in its half-year report for 2019, revealed that there were 51 suspicious alerts in the second quarter on eight different sports, spanning five different continents. They were all reported to the relevant authorities for further investigation.

This is an increase of 38% compared to the first quarter of the year, which saw 37 alerts reported, but it is a reduction of 17% on Q2 2018, when 62 alerts were reported. There were 25 in Europe, 13 in Asia, four in South America, four in Africa, three in North America, and none in Australasia.

25 tennis alerts were reported in the second quarter of 2019, which is up from the 17 reported in the first three months this year. However, compared to Q2 2018, there has been a 43% reduction, when 44 alerts were reported. Tennis is followed by football, with 18 alerts in the second quarter this year.

In the first six months of 2019, a total of 88 alerts have been reported, and this compares to 112 at the same point in 2018. This downward trend is mainly due to a continued reduction in tennis alerts.

Market data company H2 Gambling Capital calculates that gross win from betting on sport (excluding horse and dog racing), will more than double between 2017 and 2024 reaching nearly $73 billion. Football/soccer will continue to dominate, accounting for 68% of the market in 2019 and 67% in 2024.

Established in 2005, and formerly known as ESSA (Sports Betting Integrity), the International Betting Integrity Association is a sports betting integrity monitoring body that decided to rebrand last month, aiming to highlight the body’s increasingly international focus.