Football serves as a verdant betting landscape.
Rumors of Betting Scandals in German Amateur Football: Several Matches Under Investigation for Manipulation
Since November 2022, suspicions of match manipulation have surfaced in Germany, affecting approximately 17 matches across various levels. These allegedly influenced games include matches from the 3rd Liga, regional leagues, and various Oberligas, used for betting fraud purposes. Key Games featuring questionable referee calls or odd performances from goalkeepers and defenders are said to have seen suspicious betting activities, with insider information being reportedly sold on darknet markets for potential large-scale betting returns. Evidence such as corroborating chat logs is said to support these criminal deal claims.
Are Betting on Amateur Football Games Illegal?
In Germany, sports bets are forbidden by the State Treaty on Gaming. However, foreign betting platforms offer the opportunity to place wagers on amateur games below the nation's three professional leagues. Companies like Sportradar, which accumulates and digitizes game data, disseminates real-time information about game development and raises a red flag if unnaturally large bets are placed on specific events during a game in a particular country, thereby helping uncover potential manipulations.
Why Can Live Bets be Placed on Amateur Games?
Thanks to data scouts, live bets can be placed on amateur matches. In an ARD documentary, these individuals are shown working on the sidelines of 5th league matches, live-updating game data through their mobile phones for online platforms. Due to this data flow, odds for the game change minute-by-minute based on the teams' performance. Foreign betting providers enable real-time tracking and live betting on these games, with data scouts acting as their primary clients in the ARD documentary.
Why are Amateur Football Matches Vulnerable to Match-Fixing?
The financial incentives that stem from having low salaries attract players and referees interested in easy and seemingly quick side income, making lower-league games particularly susceptible to manipulation. Influencing games' outcomes through targeted actions, typically bribes, is relatively unnoticed in the amateur league.
How Much Does the Bundesliga Benefit from Sports Betting?
Sports betting advertising is now prevalent in first division matches and even stadiums themselves, with most clubs entering sponsorship deals with betting providers, lottery companies, or casinos, including the German Football League (DFL) itself. VfL Bochum remains an exemption among current first-division competitions. At VfB Stuttgart, controversy arose last year when a French-based betting provider became the club's main sponsor, attracting intense criticism from the fanbase and investor Porsche. Despite a previously agreed three-year contract, the partnership was terminated prematurely after this season.
What Steps are Being Taken Against Match-Fixing?
Authorities are currently investigating the implicated matches, with the ongoing probes taking considerable time. Recent statements from the German Football Association (DFB) indicate cooperation with the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) and State Criminal Police Office (LKA) to gather evidence, but no concrete findings have emerged regarding the accused games as of now. Some clubs have adopted aggressive measures to disrupt the data flow to foreign betting providers, taking actions like evicting data scouts during home games and preventing live bets from taking place. A recent instance involving ALTONA 93 of the Hamburger club saw such an incident last Saturday.
The scandal surrounding betting manipulation has also involved soccer matches, with some questionable games in the 3rd Liga and regional leagues being under investigation. Despite sports betting being illegal in Germany according to the State Treaty on Gaming, foreign betting platforms still allow wagers on these amateur games, creating potential vulnerabilities.
