Sports integrity specialist Starlizard Integrity Services (SIS) has released new data revealing that 79 suspicious football matches occurred globally between January and June 2024. This represents 0.21% of the 36,841 matches analyzed during this period.
Of these suspicious matches, 21.5% took place in a single country within the CONMEBOL region, showing a concerning 200% increase in suspicious matches. Additionally, 40 of the suspect matches were subject to irregular betting movements in the first-half betting markets, nearly doubling the number from the previous year.
Starlizard Integrity Services has identified various levels of suspicion among the matches, with 11 matches considered to have a HIGH level of suspicion and 39 matches having a MEDIUM level of suspicion. The data also revealed that 62% of the suspect matches occurred in lower division domestic competitions, while 24.1% were played in top division domestic competitions.
Affy Sheikh, head of Starlizard Integrity Services, expressed concern over the findings, particularly highlighting the significant increase in suspicious matches within the CONMEBOL region and the manipulation of first-half betting markets. Sheikh emphasized the ongoing threat that match-fixing poses to the integrity of the game and called for more effective strategies to combat this issue.
Starlizard Integrity Services, a division of London-based sports betting consultancy Starlizard, has been providing independent integrity services for over a decade. Through its expertise in analyzing betting market behavior and on-field performance, SIS is able to detect suspicious matches and betting movements, offering sports governing bodies a platform to monitor suspicious matches.
For more information on the latest findings from Starlizard Integrity Services and their efforts to combat match-fixing in football, visit their website at http://www.starlizardintegrity.com. To stay updated on the latest developments, download their free mobile application, KOMODO™.
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