Sports Betting and the possibility of professional sports being rigged or pre-determined.
Where there is the possibility of competition, there is the possibility for profit. Global Sports Insight in a recent article estimated that the revenues of this industry are at $2.65B. While it might be impossible to get a definitive answer on what this global industry’s market size actually is, one thing has been made abundantly clear, it is larger than most people realize. For those who do realize, sports betting is one of the easiest ways of engaging with professional sports in a way that generates profits without needing to be directly in the industry.
Over the past few decades sports betting, and more recently online sports betting has developed into a more than $110B industry. Considering the vast amounts of money at play with each game it is not a surprise that many have become intrigued or have actively attempted to rig or pre-determine the results of sports events for profit.
EVERY SUNDAY
The practice of match-fixing is not new, nor is it limited to small events. In 1946 there was an infamous attempt to fix the 1946 NFL Championship Game between the Chicago Bears and New York Giants. The attempt resulted in Alvin J. Paris, Harvey Stemmer, and David “Pete” Karkower all being convicted of bribery for their involvement in the bribery and match-fixing plot. If the NFL Championship can be rigged, it is only natural to assume that there is no big-league game where the possibility of max fixing is impossible and there are countless other examples
OLYMPICS
Even the largest international sporting event, the Summer Olympics, has on several occasions lead to investigations regarding match-fixing. In 2008 for example, Li Yongbo the Chinese badminton coach had admitted to fixing a match during the 2004 Summer Olympics. This is not the only incident that has taken place, with other suspected incidents having occurred in the 2012 Summer Olympics in the Badminton women’s doubles as well as some investigations relating to matches in the 2016 Summer Olympics during the boxing matches.
But is there a connection between those fixed matches and sports betting? While there have been attempts by individuals to fix matches to benefit financially through betting, it is also common for sports matching to not be connected to sports betting at all. Instead, there are several other factors, often relating to an athlete's positions and progress that lead to match-fixing. Nonetheless, the result is the same, a match with a pre-determined result.
Most often, this is where insider knowledge can become invaluable. Under the current state of sports, it is not necessary to bribe in order to fix a match, instead, it could simply be enough if you know of a match that is being fixed. An insider has a much bigger capacity for selling information and a much more guaranteed result than someone who instead would attempt to bribe officials or players. This is why even the slightest possibility of match-fixing is investigated immediately, in an attempt to mitigate both information selling and the possibility of further matches being fixed in favor of better sports betting results. While fairness cannot always be guaranteed in sports, constant investigations can help reduce the possibility of pre-determined results. This not only leads to better competition but also improves the accuracy of sports betting odds, allowing people to make more educated bets. Ultimately, this is better for the sports betting industry overall, while it might block certain individuals from benefitting from unlawful play and actions.
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