According to their most recent Integrity Report, the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) has observed a substantial rise in suspicious betting warnings in Q2 2024. There were 90 alerts this quarter, compared to 50 the year before and more than the 56 that were first reported in Q1 and later amended to 93.
Esports is the industry leading the surge in suspicious notifications, up significantly from only one report during the same time the previous year. A prominent instance concerned questionable wagering on 68 esoccer matches that were played in Q1 and Q2, which led to a spike in esports alerts—which currently make up half of all alerts in the first half of 2024.
Integrity concerns in esports have long been an issue, prompting global efforts to combat fixing. The Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC) has formed partnerships worldwide, including a recent collaboration with the International Olympic Committee to enhance esports integrity. Last June, US Integrity and game data platform Grid teamed up to monitor integrity and suspicious activities at esports events.
IBIA CEO Khalid Ali emphasized the organization’s vigilance: “While the increase in alerts may understandably draw attention, it should be noted that esports saw a significant reduction in annual alerts across IBIA’s membership in 2023. The case again highlights the importance and effectiveness of customer account monitoring in the detection of suspicious betting and the protection of sporting events, consumers, and regulated betting markets.”
Football and Table Tennis Alerts
Football ranked second in suspicious alerts with 16, followed by table tennis with 12. Together, esports, football, and table tennis represented 84% of all Q2 alerts. Other sports with alerts included nine for tennis, and two for badminton. Additionally, handball, boxing, and padel each had one alert.
The IBIA report also highlighted data from Brazil, where alerts have been increasing. In 2023, 11 alerts were issued, all for football. Q2 2024 saw only one football alert. Licensed operators in Brazil are required by national law to join an independent betting integrity monitoring body like the IBIA, which represents over 60% of the country’s gambling market.
Looking ahead, the IBIA predicts the onshore online market in Brazil will generate $2.28 billion in gross gaming revenue by 2025, potentially rising to $2.86 billion by 2028. However, the offshore market is also expected to grow, with offshore gross gaming revenue estimated at $145.2 million in 2025, potentially reaching $182.9 million by 2028. Consequently, Brazil could miss out on $59 million in tax revenue due to offshore, unlicensed activities.
The IBIA did offer geographic information for some alerts, even if they were unable to pinpoint the location of the majority of esports alerts. Six were for table tennis in Poland and one was for Spain out of the 19 alerts for Europe. Football and badminton each had two alarms, while tennis had three. For handball, padel, and boxing, there was one alert each.
Eleven warnings were recorded from Africa; six of those were related to football, mostly from Algeria, and three were related to table tennis, from Nigeria. There were five alerts in total—three for football and two for tennis—in South America, four for football in Asia, and three for football and two for tennis in North America.
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