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Lack of governance of football friendly (non-competitive) matches exploited by match-fixers
Football friendly matches are wide open for match-fixing due to a lack of regulation according to new research, with more than 250 friendlies involving European clubs showing signs of suspicious activity during 2016-20. The results come from a three-year study funded by the European Commission’s Erasmus+ programme and led by the University of Nicosia Research Foundation.
A survey of 700 players in Cyprus, Greece and Malta conducted by the project also found that:
- More than a quarter of players (26.5%) had played in a club friendly they suspected had been manipulated.
- More than a quarter (26.3%) of approaches to fix a friendly match were made by club officials and 15% by other players.
- Club officials were the instigators in 19% of approaches to manipulate friendlies and were the main beneficiaries in 26.3% of approaches.
The research study found that international and national football federations have been slow to establish where responsibility lies for friendlies, particularly when clubs from different countries are involved in non-competitive matches played in a third country. Some European football federations do not track where clubs go on pre-season and mid-winter tours.
This lack of sporting governance and regulation, combined with the availability of these games on betting markets around the world, notably with poorly or unregulated betting operators in jurisdictions such as Curaçao and the Philippines, who may themselves have links to criminality, leaves these games at greater risk of potential exploitation by match-fixers.
To address this, the report, Combating Match Fixing in Club Football Non-Competitive Friendlies, proposes:
- That UEFA enforces regulation of friendlies on all 55 member associations
- That match agents are barred from owning or controlling clubs, just as players agents are
- The formation of a body to represent match agents in future negotiations with international bodies such as FIFA and UEFA on regulation
- Establishing data standards that prevent the sale of live match data to poorly and unregulated betting operators
Unlike competitive matches, which are usually covered by agreements between data companies and competition organisers, friendlies are a free-for-all.
Data from these games is being collected and sold to poorly and unregulated betting operators, which do not report signs of suspicious activity, which is often a licensing requirement for well-regulated operators. This sporting event data collation and sale for betting does not currently fall within the scope of regulation, leaving a potential ‘blind spot’ in terms of market and consumer protection.
Lead investigator, Professor Nicos Kartakoullis, President of the Council, University of Nicosia, comments:
“The combination of a lack of regulation, oversight and information makes these matches easier to manipulate than competitive matches.
“This research shows that in terms of governance, friendly matches need to be considered just like competitive matches.
“With the data for 4,000 friendly matches being offered for betting purposes around the world each year, it is also vital that the betting companies receiving that data are operating from well-regulated jurisdictions and report suspicious betting to protect the integrity of those events.”
The research was led by the University of Nicosia Research Foundation and included the International Betting Integrity Association, EU Athletes, CIES and the football players unions of Cyprus, Greece and Malta as project partners.
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Stake published a new campaign video on June 23 showing a small-sided football match played on a pitch suspended from a hot air balloon at 10,000ft.
The video features six extreme sports content creators—Nathan Roque, Alessio Papia, Nicolo Contrada, Yasmin Xavier, Sara Vidal, and Carol Chafauzer—playing on a 12m x 20m synthetic grass platform. Stake said the 3,000kg pitch was carried by balloon during a 60-minute flight, with participants later jumping from the platform using parachutes.
The activation sits within Stake’s “It’s All At Stake” brand platform, which the company launched ahead of this summer’s global football tournament. According to Stake, the campaign is being promoted across YouTube, Instagram and X.
Jarrod Febbraio, Director at Stake, said: “This summer sees one of the biggest cultural moments on the planet and simply showing up is no longer enough. Our ambition is to create campaigns that genuinely capture people’s attention, spark conversation and give fans something they haven’t seen before.
“At Stake, we are always looking for ways to push creative boundaries and challenge expectations around sports marketing. Whether it’s our It’s All At Stake campaign or staging a football match thousands of feet in the air, the objective is the same – creating entertainment that resonates with audiences and delivers memorable experiences around the moments they care most about.”
Stake also said the “It’s All At Stake” campaign has generated more than 200 million views across earned and social channels in the first week of the tournament.
The post Stake releases hot air balloon football match stunt at 10,000ft appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
Infingame has published operational observations on what it says is driving player engagement on sweepstakes platforms, arguing that traditional online casino retention tactics don’t consistently translate to the sweepstakes model.
According to the aggregator, the strongest-performing sweepstakes products are built around progression-driven engagement, social-style competition, lightweight onboarding, and highly dynamic promotional systems. “Sweepstakes players behave very differently from traditional casino audiences,” said Jana Filagina, Head of Commercial at Infingame. “The expectation is much closer to entertainment platforms and gaming ecosystems than classic gambling products. Retention is driven by interaction quality, progression, and continuous engagement rather than purely transactional behavior.”
Infingame identified tournament ecosystems as a leading mechanic for repeat participation and session continuity, saying competitive formats outperform static reward campaigns by adding progression loops and achievement motivation. The company said operators using segmented tournament mechanics recorded higher repeat participation rates than those relying mainly on bonus-driven campaigns, and flagged “multiplier races, win races, and progression-based leaderboard systems” as particularly effective for mobile-first audiences due to short-session play patterns.
“Players want activity, not passive rewards,” Filagina said. “The strongest-performing sweepstakes platforms are creating environments where players continuously interact with missions, rankings, tournaments, and achievement systems rather than simply claiming bonuses.”
Infingame also highlighted mission-based challenge systems as a fast-growing retention lever, saying they encourage broader content exploration and higher daily return activity than standard promotional structures. Separately, the company pointed to infrastructure scalability as an operational priority, arguing that mobile-heavy, interaction-focused audiences make responsiveness and gameplay continuity central to engagement performance as operators scale across North America.
The post Infingame says tournaments and missions drive retention on sweepstakes platforms appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
Isle of Man-based regulatory and licensing consultancy says it has opened in Ireland and will announce further locations.
SolutionsHub has marked its 10-year anniversary, highlighting international expansion plans from its Isle of Man base. Founder Lee Hills set up the regulatory and licensing consultancy on 23 June 2016, the day of the Brexit referendum.
The company said it has grown from a one-person operation into what it describes as “the largest regulatory and licensing consultancy on the Isle of Man,” supported by a team that includes former regulators, government officials and compliance specialists. SolutionsHub said it now supports “hundreds of businesses and organisations” across gaming, fintech and other regulated sectors, and has received “more than 55 industry awards, including three EGR awards.”
SolutionsHub said its international footprint has increased, with an office established in Ireland and further overseas offices set to be announced as part of its next stage of development. The company also said it is broadening its work into adjacent regulated industries as regulation and operational complexity evolve globally.
Hills said: “I did not begin with a detailed ten-year plan. I knew the type of business I wanted to create and the standards I wanted it to represent, but what SolutionsHub has become has been built by the people who joined the business and contributed their own knowledge, experience and commitment.
“We have never pursued growth simply for the sake of becoming bigger. We have focused on being consistent, investing in people with genuine regulatory and operational experience and making sure that growth does not come at the expense of the quality of our work.
“That has been a collective effort throughout the past ten years. Every person who has worked with us, supported the business or trusted us to advise them has played a part in reaching this point.
“The opportunity now is to take the same approach into new markets, strengthen our international presence and continue building the expertise our clients will need as regulation becomes increasingly complex.”
SolutionsHub COO Nick Wright added: “When I joined SolutionsHub, it was still a very young business, but the ambition and the standards behind it were already clear,” Wright said.
“What has followed has been a genuine team effort. We have brought together people with significant regulatory, operational and industry experience, and each of them has contributed to the business SolutionsHub is today.
“The company is larger, the team has grown and we now work across more markets, but the underlying principles have remained the same. We want to do the work properly, give clients practical support and build relationships that last.
“Reaching ten years gives us an opportunity to recognise everything the team has achieved together, while also looking ahead to what we can build next.”
The post SolutionsHub marks 10 years and plans more overseas offices appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
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