Sports Integrity Strengthens as Global Match-Fixing Declines in 2025

Core Insights - The annual report by Sportradar highlights a positive trend in the containment of global match-fixing activities, driven by enhanced monitoring, enforcement, and education initiatives [1][2]. Group 1: Match-Fixing Statistics - In 2025, Sportradar monitored over 1,000,000 events across 70 sports, identifying 1,116 suspicious matches, which is a 1% decrease from 2024 [2]. - More than 99.5% of sporting events monitored were free from suspicion, indicating the effectiveness of integrity measures [2]. - Europe had the highest number of suspicious matches but saw a reduction of 66 cases compared to 2024, while South America reported 64 fewer suspicious matches [3]. Group 2: Sports Impacted - Soccer was the most affected sport with 618 suspicious matches, followed by basketball with 233, and notable increases in tennis (78), table tennis (65), and cricket (59) [4]. Group 3: Technological Advancements - The AI-powered Universal Fraud Detection System (UFDS AI) significantly enhanced match monitoring, with a 56% year-on-year increase in suspicious matches flagged through AI analysis [5]. Group 4: Enforcement and Education - Sportradar supported 125 sporting sanctions across seven sports in 2025, bringing the total to over 1,000 [6]. - Integrity Education initiatives reached more than 34,000 participants, marking a 25% increase from 2024 [6]. Group 5: Future Outlook - Sportradar is preparing to support integrity for major events in 2026, including the FIFA World Cup in North America and the Olympic Winter Games in Italy [7].