Major European Soccer Body Backs IOC Betting Compensation Call

Jacques Rogge, IOC President, stated earlier this month that sports bodies should receive a cut of betting revenues and also insisted that governments should impose tighter controls on gambling in sport, speaking ahead of a summit with government ministers, Interpol, UN representatives and betting operators.

The PFSC, chaired by UEFA president Michel Platini and comprising representatives from the European Club Association, European Professional Football Leagues, FIFPro and UEFA, released a statement via the official website of European football’s governing body yesterday, March 10, to confirm its members had “agreed a united position regarding the issue of betting”.

The statement added: “Financial solidarity depends on redistribution of revenue from the commercial exploitation of top professional football to the grassroots…(and the PFSC) expresses concern at the growing unauthorised commercial use of football competitions for betting purposes.

“(The PFSC) considers that competition organisers/clubs should have the right, including intellectual property right, to consent to their events being used by betting companies and that such companies should pay fair financial compensation,” added the statement on UEFA.com. “Such financial compensation is also essential for funding grassroots football as well as fighting match-fixing and sports fraud.”

The PFSC also stated it would urge “political authorities to adopt a concrete national and/or European-wide legislation to address these matters and to ensure a fair financial return to football”.