Association Wants to Guarantee Sport and Betting Integrity in Brazil

March 10, 2023 | Sports Betting

BRAZIL (March 9, 2023) — Recent cases of attempted manipulation of games involving sports betting have alerted the authorities and also the sector operators, who have been moving to try to curb the crimes. Therefore, five entities came together to create the Brazilian Association for the Defense of the Integrity of Sport, Associação Brasileira de Defesa da Integridade do Esporte (Abradie) formed by Entain, Genius Sports, Rei do Pitaco, Bichara e Motta Advogados, and Maia Yoshiyasu Advogados.

Abradie is a non-profit organization that will deal with issues that threaten the integrity of Brazilian sports, such as the attempt to manipulate games in order to profit from betting. The association aims to bring together the main representatives of the betting industry, government authorities, players, fans, sports regulators, teams and legal professionals, to protect consumers, sports leagues and other interested parties.

Martin Lycka, Senior Vice President of US Regulatory Affairs and Responsible Gaming at Entain, commented on the initiative

“As part of Entain’s ongoing commitment to operate only in well-regulated and governed markets, I am pleased to see that the industry is coming together to support the integrity of Brazilian sport and prevent match-fixing. This is one of the main underlying factors in any betting regulation, including future Brazilian regulation.”

“We are excited to launch Brazil’s first sports integrity association to champion a safe and reliable betting environment for consumers across the country. We look forward to working with regulators, members of regulatory authorities, operators, sports leagues and other key stakeholders to prevent fraud and protect the integrity of sports.”

Reinforcing the importance of launching ABRADIE, Rafael Marchetti Marcondes, Legal Director of Rei do Pitaco, also commented:

“Rei do Pitaco supports initiatives that defend sports integrity, Responsible Gaming practices and encourage sustainable growth in the sports betting market. Cases that may compromise the reputation of the sport, such as matches, spot-fixing or the participation of minors as bettors, must be monitored and punished, since all participants in the betting market lose with fraudulent and criminal attitudes. Cooperation between all entities involved, public or private, is mandatory to combat activities that harm the sport, as well as its development.”

According to the organizers, the association is envisioned as a collaborative entity, to establish partnerships with the regulatory body, federal and state authorities and other interested parties, to identify and discourage fraud, as well as other illegal or unethical activities related to sports betting. The expert group will discuss a range of issues, including the possibility of developing actions to improve communication and collaboration between sports, betting operators, and the regulatory body.

Consultations will be aimed at evaluating the integrity measures in force in relation to sports betting, seeking to guarantee suitability, and helping in the education of players, referees and others involved in the sports activity. The group’s main focus will be to identify and assess suspicious betting patterns across all Brazilian sports.

For legal support, the association has two law firms. Marcos Motta, Founding Partner of Bichara e Motta Advogados, spoke about the launch of Abradie:

“Our office is excited to launch this collaboration project with such key players in the sports and betting industry. Our focus is on protecting the integrity of sport in Brazil and assisting the government, Congress and sporting bodies in applying international best practice to our upcoming Brazilian betting regulation.”

“The association is being created at a critical moment, when the Brazilian market is growing rapidly and finalizing its regulation. Protecting the integrity of sport is critical to the sports betting industry, and Abradie members will demonstrate their commitment to industry best practice by supporting government, sporting bodies and other stakeholders in protecting sport from related corruption threats. betting.”, concluded Luiz Felipe Maia, from Maia Yoshiyasu Advogados.

SOURCE: Aposta 10.