Eight matches at Wimbledon have been reported to tennis authorities on suspicion that their results have been fixed by professional gambling syndicates.
A report in The Times said the matches are named in a dossier compiled by leading bookmaking companies, which monitor suspect betting patterns and players thought to be willing to throw games.
Four of the matches are from last year’s men’s singles and involve foreign players who each lost by three sets.
More than £450 million was bet on Wimbledon matches last year through just one Internet site, the UK-based betting exchange Betfair. Many suspect matches show huge rises in the money pledged, compared with similar games. Match-fixers can exploit the odds to share out six-figure sums, leaving significant profits even after paying off a player the loss of prize money for throwing a match. One player has gone on record saying he turned down a £70,000 payoff to lose in the first round at Wimbledon. The prize for losing in the first round this year is £10,250.
It is believed Russian and Eastern European gamblers are behind much of the illegal betting, although the dossier also names a gang of Austrian gamblers.
The disclosure of suspected match fixing comes amid increased concern about the influence of criminal betting syndicates. The All England Club has tightened security this year to prevent players’ entourages from gaining access to insider information that could be used in gambling. Only the player and their coach will now be granted entry to the changing rooms.
The dossier identifies games involving male and female players since 2002 that are considered to be suspect because of betting patterns. A tennis source, who is familiar with its contents, told The Times: “The result was decided before the players came onto court. They all conform to the same pattern. There is a very dramatic shift in the market and there are enormous volumes traded.”
A number of Argentine, Russian, Italian, Spanish and Austrian players are named in the dossier, which covers events around the world including the four Grand Slams.
Five of the losing players from the eight Wimbledon games listed in the dossier are in this year’s men’s singles competition, which began Tuesday. A total of 18 players competing in this year’s tournament appear as losers in the dossier.
The potential gains of a match-fixer can far outweigh the loss of prize money in the early rounds of the biggest tournaments. A player at last year’s Wimbledon would earn £10,000 for competing in the first round, with extra prize money of only £6,325 for progressing to the second round. On the other hand, bets of £400,000 — a figure mentioned in the dossier for just one Internet site — could net £80,000 or more, depending on the odds.
Betfair closely monitors suspicious betting on tennis and sends reports to the sports’ governing bodies. A spokesman for the company said many bookmakers operated blacklists and refused to accept bets on particular players. He said this was not Betfair’s policy, but added, “We certainly monitor the market where certain players are involved far more closely than we would with others.”
It was Betfair that prompted the latest inquiry into match-fixing when it declared void £3.4 million of bets last August on a single match. Large sums had been placed on Martin Vassallo Arguello, a low-ranked Argentinian, to beat Nikolay Davydenko, the Russian ranked No. 4 in the world. The inquiry into the match is continuing and both players deny any wrongdoing.
A number of Argentine, Russian, Italian, Spanish and Austrian players are named in the dossier, which covers events around the world including the four Grand Slams.
Five of the losing players from the eight Wimbledon games listed in the dossier are in this year’s men’s singles competition, which began Tuesday. A total of 18 players competing in this year’s tournament appear as losers in the dossier.
The potential gains of a match-fixer can far outweigh the loss of prize money in the early rounds of the biggest tournaments. A player at last year’s Wimbledon would earn £10,000 for competing in the first round, with extra prize money of only £6,325 for progressing to the second round. On the other hand, bets of £400,000 — a figure mentioned in the dossier for just one Internet site — could net £80,000 or more, depending on the odds.
Betfair closely monitors suspicious betting on tennis and sends reports to the sports’ governing bodies. A spokesman for the company said many bookmakers operated blacklists and refused to accept bets on particular players. He said this was not Betfair’s policy, but added, “We certainly monitor the market where certain players are involved far more closely than we would with others.”
It was Betfair that prompted the latest inquiry into match-fixing when it declared void £3.4 million of bets last August on a single match. Large sums had been placed on Martin Vassallo Arguello, a low-ranked Argentinian, to beat Nikolay Davydenko, the Russian ranked No. 4 in the world. The inquiry into the match is continuing and both players deny any wrongdoing.
