ECONOMIC issue- Match Fixing Flashcards
(16 cards)
Define match fixing?
‘Loosing on purpose’ eg: 2012 women’s Badminton doubles- China vs Korea. Both pairs had already qualified for the last 16 and their actions appeared to be an attempt to manipulate the final standings in Group A
Questions who draws the lines and on what grounds.
Other definitions of Match Fixing?
A social product- defined socially.
Council of Europe (2014)-
An international agreement or act of omission aimed at an IMPROPER alteration of the result or the course of a sports competition,
in order to remove all or part of the UNPREDICTABLE NATURE of the competition
with the view of OBTAINING an UNDUE advantage”
What are the three types of match-fixing?
Sporting motivation- to avoid an opponent
Betting motivation- to make MONEY
Non sporting/ betting- college admission scandals, paying officials to fix a game.
What is the problem with match-fixing?
A contemporary integrity issue.
- Threat to the INTEGRITY of the sport- removes the fundamental property of the sport: the genuine commitment to victory.
- Concequences- undermines cultural/ symbolic values
By reducing the ideal that sports are supposed to represent to society
By betraying the fans allegiance and support
- Risks commercial value-could lead to the collapse of an entire sports league and it’s related partners/ industries.
- Attendance/ viewership dropped
- Sponsorship withdrawn
Would be hard to regain public/ commercial support
HOW/ WHY has match fixing become a global issue?
- The development of technologies and the emergence of online betting
Anyone, Anywhere, Any Match
(Tak, Sam & Jackson, 2018) - The hyper globalisation of the betting market:
-Release of riskier betting products – easier to fix (e.g., single bets vs. multiple bets)
- Increased volume of money into sports betting: “the greatest friend of the fixer” (Forrest, 2012, p. 19)
- Difficult for jurisdictions to regulate illegal conduct occurring beyond national boundaries - An ideal marriage of Asian betting and European sports:
“The Asian criminals get access to the teams and players [in Europe]; the European criminals get access to the lucrative Asian gambling market” (Hill, 2012a, p. 13)
What are the four key academic approaches to gambling related match fixing?
- Rational choice approach
- Investigative journalism approach
- Socio-cultural approach
4.Political sociology approach
Others (ethical, legal views and regional case studies, etc.)
Describe the Rational choice approach towards match fixing?
Looks at the costs/ benefits of match fixing (Forrest, 2003)
Individuals weigh up the pros/ cons and make a rational choice
The most influential perspective
Expected benefits (monetary gain)
vs
Expected cost (loss of future earnings, loss of glory/ reputation, moral unease/ shame)
College athletes - highly vulnerable as not all will make it pro.
“It’s almost a perfect storm for criminal conspiracy when you’ve got young athletes with uncertain futures and financial hardships ”
(David Schwartz, the Director of the Centre for Gaming Research at the University of Nevada )
What are some deterrents for the Rational choice approach?
Countermeasures=
Education Programmes
Disciplinary actions
Criminalisation Early warning system
How is the rational choice approach linked to economics?
Pointing to poor management of sports
“A player who has to wait for his money has a greater chance of being approached to manipulate a match” (FIFPro, 2012, p. 6)
Disciplinary background in economics
* Focus on the betting market
* Reflecting the perspective of betting operators
* The location of defrauding is in the betting market
- Major victims: punters, bookmakers > sport organisations and fans
Football betting
* Recreational activity < a 90-min-long investment product
* Match-fixing: ethical < financial crime
Describe the Investigative Journalism approach towards match fixing?
This approach becomes involved to delve into the deeper side of sports and match fixing.
Modus operandi (a particular way) of match- fixing (Hill, 2009): processes and actors
(1) Access
(2) Set up
(3) Calling of the fix
(4) Performance
(5) Payment
Where does investigative journalism approach place the blame?
Pointing to organised crime groups and illegal bookmakers- huge profits associated with illegal gambling.
Revealed the most GENERAL patterns of match fixing- wider applicability- happening everywhere?
- “I argue throughout the paper that widespread match corruption is not a cultural phenomenon: Chinese, Singaporeans and Asians in general are no more willing to take bribes for ethnic or cultural reasons than any other group. I find that the data indicates that when similar conditions exist in a football league in a different country with a different cultural background – England in the 1950s, players also engaged in match-fixing.” (Hill, 2010, p. 222)
Describe the Socio-cultural approach towards match fixing?
The cultures and practices that leads to involvement with match-fixing- takes a MICRO perspective.
The ‘Code of Brotherhood’- mutual help, rationalities and behaviours.
‘When a buddy suffers from difficulties, no worries, we’ll do whatever is within our capacity to help him. If we’ve no capacity, we’ll think about all possible solutions…That’s the Code of Brotherhood’. (Tzeng, Lee and Tzeng, 2020, p. 1934
What is Confucianism in relation to the socio cultural approach?
Five basic human relationships- how to treat each other and the principles between people- these norms usually work positively…
BUT can also manifest negatively due to coercion
‘The core beliefs include harmony between humans, justice, respect for one’s elders, and loyalty to one’s family and friends. These principles guide personal conduct, social relations, and governance.’
Role orientated relationships.
eg: Some Taiwanese basketball players have got involved with match fixing to maintain social relationships- too far.
Describe the Political Sociology approach towards match fixing?
Underlines the political forces- argues that Institutional contexts where match-fixing occurs: sports on the gambling table (Tak, 2018)- takes a MACRO perspective.
Looking at the politics around sports- betting regimes.
eg: Bet365 head Denise Coates sets UK record with £323 million pay packet
Argues that therefore, BETTING OPERATORS, STATES and SPORTS GOV. BODIES are the stakeholders RESPONSIBLE for gambling.
What are the strengths and weaknesses of the Political Sociology approach?
Strength:
Holds powerful stakeholders responsible for creating the fundamental risks of match-fixing.
Weakness:
What’s the point of criticising legal sports- betting regimes. It’s an inherent part of sport, can sport and gambling be separated.
Are these four approaches playing a blame-game?
Alluding to who’s fault it is?
- The individual and the system that might make them make that choice
- Poor management that becomes investigated
- Micro relationships and cultural norms socially
- Macro organisations, politics and built in conditions- the failings of commercial and regulatory forces?
