Brussels, 09/06/2011 (Agence Europe) - The European association of national lotteries, European Lotteries, has pledged to do more to tackle illegal betting and illegal use of gambling, in line with discussions to address this scourge taking place between European authorities and relevant sporting associations. At its General Meeting in Helsinki on 8 June, European Lotteries adopted a resolution setting out a number of initiatives to tackle illegal betting and preserve the integrity of sport. “We have been the prime partners of sport for decades, providing sustainable funding of more than €2 billion to European sport each year. And we are more than ever committed to helping defend the values of sport wherever we can, including by financial contributions”, said European Lotteries President Friedrich Stickler.
The initiatives put forward by the association of national lotteries include: (1) expanding the European Lotteries Monitoring System to a global monitoring system for sports bets which includes members of lottery associations from around the world and, in particular, Asia; (2) establishing an international sports integrity agency; (3) promoting the idea of a solidarity and integrity payment from all sports betting operators to provide financial support for the measures needed to fight betting manipulation of sports events; (4) promoting strict legislation against money laundering through sports betting, sports fraud and conflicts of interest between betting operators and sports clubs, teams and active athletes, as already exists in some European countries; (5) urging regulators to continue to restrict or prohibit certain types of bets that pose a high risk to the integrity of sports competitions and set limits to pay-out ratios.
In addition, European Lotteries and SportAccord, the umbrella organisation for all international Olympic and non-Olympic sports associations, the organisers of international sports events and international sports-related associations, have signed a memorandum of understanding to further the cooperation, begun in 2010, on the integrity of sport. At the start of 2011, the two associations launched an awareness-raising programme aimed at sportsmen and women and sports leaders on integrity in sports betting. (I.L./transl.rt)