The Council of Europe confirms an international treaty on match-fixing effective September

The Council of Europe announced last week that the Convention on the Manipulation of Sports Competitions, also known as the Macolin Convention, will enter into force on 1 September 2019 following Switzerland’s ratification. Switzerland became Thursday the fifth Council of Europe member state to ratify the Convention – following Norway, Portugal, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine – triggering its entry into force.

“The entry into force of the Macolin Convention is good news for everyone who values fair play and integrity in sport,” said Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland. “The convention is a major step forward in the fight against corruption in sport and has received firm backing from major sports organizations and partners including FIFA and UEFA. I urge all of our member states, and countries around the world, to sign and ratify the convention as soon as possible.”

Launched in 2014, the Macolin Convention is the only legally-binding international treaty promoting global cooperation to tackle the manipulation of sports competitions. A total of 37 countries, including Australia, have now signed the convention. Other non-European countries, including Cap Verde and Morocco, have also expressed an interest in joining.

Khalid Ali, Secretary General of international betting integrity body ESSA (European Sports Security Association), which engaged in the drafting of the Convention on behalf of the sector, stated: “The Convention sets out a range of practical measures to address match-fixing internationally and it has been broadly supported by ESSA and the wider betting sector. Ratification of the Convention is therefore a predominantly positive move. However, there remain hurdles to overcome. The definition of illegal sports betting, in particular, continues to present challenges to universal acceptance of the Convention text.”  

Last year, the Council of Europe requested that ESSA coordinate and deliver a thematic report on sports betting integrity issues on behalf of the regulated private betting sector as part of the preparations for ratification of the Convention. That document sets out the betting sector’s view of the main challenges to the adoption of the Convention and the fight against match-fixing, including the Convention’s definition of illegal sports betting, restrictions on betting markets and integrity payments, amongst others.