Behind The Competition Manipulation and Sport Gambling Policy
The Competition Manipulation and Sport Gambling Policy (CMSGP) is the next of the National Integrity Framework (NIF) policies Transplant Australia introduces to you – our vital members. Some of you may be thinking: why does it matter about gambling in para-sport? Others may wonder what relevance this has to my particular sport, as it is not a high-performance or elite environment. This article will give a quick overview of the sinister side of sport, and why such policies are necessary for the Australian sporting sector generally, as well as our sporting environment at Transplant Australia.
The Big Picture:
Competition manipulation and other forms of corruption happen in sport globally, and the world has witnessed many scandals as a result of inappropriate conduct with sport, including para-sports. The most prominent example in para-sport was in 2000, when the Spanish basketball team competed in the Paralympics claiming to be a team with athletes with an intellectual disability, despite 10 of the 12 of the players not having an intellectual disability as claimed. There have also been cases of what is known as intentional misrepresentation in para-sports, which is where athletes deliberately conceal the truth of their skills or abilities or degree of their medical impairment in order to gain an advantage in sport. A well-known case of intentional misrepresentation was that of Vinod Kumar who was banned for two years by the International Paralympic Committee. And of course, there is little need to traverse the history of doping scandals in sport to illuminate the wider issues. The world has taken notice of the problems of manipulation of sporting events and fixtures, and has developed the Convention on the Manipulation of Sports Competitions (known as the Macolin Convention) which aims to tackle corruption in sport.
More recently, the wide-ranging threat of competition manipulation to Australian sport was set out in detail in the 2018 Report of the Review of Australia’s Sports Integrity Arrangements (the Wood Review). The Recommendations of the Wood Review covered five key themes and made 52 recommendations. The five themes were:
- Reponses to match-fixing
- Regulations of gambling and sports wagering
- Enhancement of anti-doping
- Developing a National Sports Tribunal
- Developing a National Sports Integrity Commission
So, what is competition manipulation in the Convention and the CMSGP
Competition manipulation is sometimes known as match-fixing. It is a form of cheating wider than doping and can involve conduct by athletes, coaches, staff, support personnel, sport officials, venue officials, and participants from club level right through to international level sport. Under Article 3 of the Macolin Convention, it is defined as any “intentional arrangement, act or omission aimed at an improper alteration of the result of the course of a sports competition”. Competition manipulation may involve organised criminals who seek to profit off of gambling or benefit through the use of improperly obtained “inside” information.
Under the CMSGP, competition manipulation is defined by the prohibited conduct provision of the policy. Prohibit conduct in the policy includes:
- Changing the result (or course of a) sporting event, to benefit oneself or others, such as losing a specific period of the match for gambling purposes;
- Betting on your own sport;
- Disclosing private information – not available to the general public – which could influence gambling;
- Providing a benefit to breach the policy (or attempting to do so), such as offering money to commit fouls or a breach of the game;
- Failing to report information relating to competition manipulation, such as blackmail, threats, or bribes to fix a competition.
Further information on the Competition Manipulation and Sport Gambling Policy can be found at the following links: [CMSGP video][CMSGP Auslan video]
Other Risks:
The CMSGP does not prohibit entering into legitimate commercial agreements, such as sponsorship deals or advertising arrangements, with regulated gambling organisations in Australia.
However, by becoming aware of the requirements of the Policy, as well as broader issues in competition manipulation, such as techniques used, we can be alert to what may be problematic arrangements. If a club or association wishes to enter into any commercial agreements, we recommend that this be dealt with at the Board and Senior Executive level, including discussions with any national governing body.
Aside from sponsorship agreements, there are a few types of behaviours which are known to pose risks to the integrity of sport, as they can influence people involved in competition manipulation. These are risks associated with live streaming of events, courtsiding and data scouts.
I Think There Has Been Competition Manipulation in My Sport – Who Do I Complain To?
For any behaviour you suspect or believe would constitute prohibited conduct in the CMSGP, it is a requirement to report this to the National Integrity Manager of Transplant Australia by email at contactus@transplant.org.au. The integrity manager will assist you with further reporting obligations, as some issues may be required to be reported to law enforcement agencies.
Once a report has been made, it will then be dealt with under the Complaints Dispute and Disciplinary Policy. If a breach of the policy has been found to have occurred, the matter including using the case categorisation model to determine appropriate sanctions. Matters which have been reported to law enforcement agencies will be dealt with under the legislation which governs those organisations and matters.
Further Information
Transplant Australia believes that ‘knowledge is empowering’. As such, we recommend trying to learn more about competition manipulation and how sports gambling can be a risk to Australian sport, whether we play at club level, national level or international level. Sport Integrity Australia has useful resources to learn more about competition manipulation here, and there is a free short course which we recommend undertaking to improve your knowledge available here. The short course may even count as continuing professional development (CPD) within your workplace.
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