On 29 August 2019, the MGA announced the
creation of a new Sports Integrity Unit as part of an initiative to increase
focus and resources towards the fight against the manipulation of sports
competitions. The SIU’s role consists of the gathering of intelligence and
information relating to suspicious betting and will serve as a liaison with
local and foreign regulatory authorities, law enforcement agencies, betting
monitoring systems, sporting bodies and gaming operators in order to support
the investigation of irregular and suspicious betting activity.
Furthermore, the Unit will also be liaising
with other Directorates within the MGA to implement various policy initiatives,
such as bringing into force the provisions at law relating to the reporting of
suspicious betting activity by gaming operators to the MGA, signing agreements
and deepening collaboration with entities having similar objectives and
otherwise establishing a culture of cooperation amongst industry stakeholders
to tackle the worldwide problem of corruption in sports.
It is now the MGA’s objective to bring into
force the Suspicious Betting Reporting
Requirements, as noted in section 43 of the Gaming Authorisations and Compliance Directive (Directive 3 of
2018). Section 43 states:
43. (1) B2C licensees which offer betting on
sporting events shall also inform the Authority, in such circumstances and in
such manner as the Authority may in any other instrument prescribe, of any
instance of suspicious betting.
43. (2) B2C licensees which offer betting on
sporting events shall also inform the Authority of any circumstances which may
lead to one or more bets being voided owing to suspicion of manipulation of the
event to which they relate, and shall provide any supporting documentation
which the Authority may, on a case-by-case basis, reasonably require.
43. (3) This article shall not come into force on 1st
August 2018, but on such date as the Authority may, by binding instrument,
establish.
The MGA is continuously analysing best
practices in the field of sports betting integrity. Conscious of the need to
remain at the forefront in the fight against the manipulation of sports
competitions, the Authority intends to bring into force section 43 of the Gaming Authorisations and Compliance
Directive (Directive 3 of 2018), together with other measures as expounded
in this consultation.
The consultation objective is to gather
feedback on the proposed bringing into force of the Suspicious Betting Reporting Requirements together with other
measures which the Authority intends to implement in support of its commitment
to safeguard the integrity of sports and sports betting. In this regard, the
Authority is also interested in gathering feedback from B2B licensees and how
their data can help in detecting potential manipulation in sports competitions.
See also: https://www.mga.org.mt/the-mga-publishes-a-consultation-paper-on-the-suspicious-betting-reporting-requirements-other-sports-integrity-measures/?fbclid=IwAR15L2MrA6VsB5U4nNAsEd8yRKZqIPDCRBWnqI9bLE-lPfa9S-lbYH7rCmM