Blatter to Meet Interpol Chief to Cooperate Against Illegal Betting

Interpol secretary general Ronald K. Noble and FIFA President Sepp Blatter are to meet next week to establish a closer cooperation in the fight against illegal betting and match-fixing in soccer. 

The talks will form part of concerted efforts by FIFA to combat the growing threat of corrupt betting and match-rigging scams with Blatter and Noble holding a press conference on Monday, May 9, at 4pm CET to announce the outcome of talks.

Blatter told the conference at a Sports Funding, Sponsoring, and Sports Betting Congress in Zurich last month: “Match fixing shakes the very foundations of sport, namely fair play, respect and discipline. That’s why FIFA employs a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to any infringement of these values.”

In February, FIFA’s subsidiary company Early Warning System GmbH helped detect two friendly matches in Turkey identified as being suspicious.

Following an investigation into unusual betting patterns, FIFA charged six match officials for their involvement in fixing the Bulgaria 2-2 draw with Estonia and Latvia’s 2-1 victory over Bolivia after all seven goals were scored from penalties.

Marco Villiger, FIFA’s director of legal affairs told the March conference: “Nobody has anything against gambling. Our goal is to protect the integrity of sport and to fight against practices that undermine it. Fraud and match fixing are threats to the core values of sport.” 

It is estimated that the sports industry generates around US$300bn a year, whilst sports betting has an approximate annual worth of $350-400bn.