Going back over 100 years there have been people in sport who have believed that they are above the laws of the game and have flagrantly ignored what many refer to as the ‘spirit of the game.’ With so much money tied up in sport this has become far more prevalent in recent years, but little is done about it.
In 2017 the English FA terminated a contract with betting company Ladbrokes said to be worth around UKL£4m a year. This decision came following a string of high-profile gambling controversies in the sport.
This decision was the result of a review into whether it was appropriate for the governing body to accept money from a gambling agency while at the same time trying to stamp out players, clubs and officials from engaging in betting. It was a move that showed leadership and a shift from the ‘do as we say not as we do’ style of leadership in many other sports.
Yet at the time of this announcement the English Football League (EFL) made the following statement to The Guardian in relation to their sponsorship deal with Sky Bet. “The EFL is of the firm belief that there is no conflict in having a commercial relationship with the gaming industry, as it is the FA who have the ultimate responsibility of enforcing any breach of the existing betting rules that all those who participate in our competitions have to adhere to.” Talk about passing the buck and absolving yourselves of any responsibility!
To many football fans this was a cop out. That the EFL was abrogating its responsibilities to the paying public and fans.
So how do fans feel about the Australian Premier Leagues, the group now controlling the A-League competitions signing a sponsorship agreement with betting agency Neds?
With the APL now being seperate from Football Australia many would feel that they too are now free to do as they please, and no doubt many of the A-League club owners would feel that way. However ultimately the APL falls under the control of the FA who in turn fall under the laws and regulations of FIFA.
On FIFA’s own website they are very clear about the situation, and write: “Those bound by the FIFA Code of Ethics, namely all officials, referees, players as well as match agents and intermediaries, are subject to the Code as follows:”
Point two goes on to state: “They shall not have any interests, either directly or indirectly (through or in conjunction with third parties), in entities, companies, organisations, etc. that promote, broker, arrange or conduct betting, gambling, lotteries or similar events or transactions connected with football matches and competitions;” So how does this sponsorship deal sit within those rules? As clearly the A-League teams by having the management of their competition sign this deal are now directly, or depending on your view, indirectly benefitting from a company that promotes betting and gambling.
One problem facing Football Australia is should they wish to step in they have a betting situation of their own hanging over their heads. For the streaming of NPL games across the country was brokered by the FA. No revenue from this deal reaches the state bodies or the NPL clubs whose grounds are being used and whose players are featured. All money goes to the FA. According to a football insider the service is being paid for by an overseas betting organisation. A quick search of the company contracted to carry out the work raises concerns as they are registered as a “Body Corporate” rather than a production company or similar. The explanation of a body corporate is an organisation that “comprises all owners who share common property on a piece of land.”
If you head to the website of the company concerned they provide next to no information on a single landing page, which should have an organisation like the FA concerned. However maybe because a further four national sporting organisations are listed as using their service they assumed that all was okay and carried out no checks of their own. In fact 16 Australia sporting organisations are listed as being clients. How many did background checks on the said company? How many are aware that the service is allegedly being funded by an overseas betting agency?
This arrangement comes as no surprise to those who follow the corruption in sport and the undermining of the integrity of sport through betting. For history has shown that most of the money made through illegal gambling is made in corrupting the competitions, matches and players below the top flight. At this level the odd “upset” often flies under the radar, but has the potential to make some people a lot of money.
While it is understandable that football in Australia needs all the help it can get in terms of sponsorship and coverage, these two deals appear on the surface to be ill-advised and not thought through. We have been looking at this issue as far back as Podcast #2 and Podcast 47 (at 34mins) as mentioned here it is a worry when children know the betting odds and not the names of the players! This confirms that something is very wrong.
We have seen in the past NPL players suspended for betting on matches within their competition. Players know that such behaviour is illegal and they face suspension if caught, but with the management of the league actually welcoming a betting company as a sponsor it makes it very hard for them to take the moral high ground. Both parties would do well to keep their distance from such arrangements as one feels that if illegal activity were to be uncovered the game and the management of the game would be greatly tarnished. Are not the administration and the board appointed to protect the integrity of the game and ensure fair play?
It was announced in September this year that the UK Government was going to step in and ban betting firms from sponsoring football shirts following its review of gambling laws. This cannot have come as any surprise to anyone. However it will deal a major blow to many of the clubs. It was reported that at the present time nine of the 20 Premier League clubs have gambling companies as their front-of-shirt sponsor, with another six teams in the Championship also featuring betting companies on theirs. Those sponsorship deals were estimated to be worth a combined UKL£100million a year. So the banning of such advertising, as well as that of betting companies advertising alongside the pitch will be a major financial blow to the clubs.
While many are claiming that this is just a government attempt to win votes, others who understand how important football is to the people of England see this as a move that has to happen.
The Government’s white paper, which is a policy document setting out proposals for future legislation, is due to come out at the end of this year or in early 2022. Following the release of the white paper there will then be a three-month consultation period before the bill goes to Parliament. Essentially this will mean that any changes that could potentially affect sports or teams are not likely to come into effect until 2023 at the earliest. Yet if this is passed by the UK government you can expect other governments to soon follow this lead.
At the end of the day sports lovers, players and fans have to ask which is more important, the integrity of the game, now and into the future, or the money being paid into the sport by these companies. If you answer in favour of the second option, ask yourself why they are putting this money into the sport? Never forget that they only invest these monies because they know that they will get that investment and more back.
Something that Football Australia and the Australian Premier Leagues would no doubt be well aware of when going into partnership with these companies. Hopefully, their due diligence will make sure that they are not exposing their organisation, the clubs and those associated with them to any scandals in the future.
