Football Tops the Charts for Suspicious Betting Alerts in Q1 2025, Reports IBIA
The International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) has unveiled that the first quarter of 2025 saw an alarming total of 63 suspicious betting alerts, with football alone accounting for nearly half of these notifications.
This figure represents an 11% increase compared to the revised count of 57 alerts from the same period last year. However, it has slightly decreased from the 65 alerts recorded in the final quarter of 2024.
Football was clearly the sport of greatest concern, yielding 31 alerts—representing 49% of the total for the period. This trend mirrors findings from previous quarters, where football consistently topped the list of sports associated with suspicious betting activities.
Tennis, table tennis, and basketball each generated nine alerts, tying for the second position. The IBIA also noted four alerts related to betting on esports, along with a single instance concerning horse racing.
When examining the geographical distribution of these alerts, North America emerged as the most affected region, with a total of 17 alerts. Among these, nine were linked to football betting activities in Mexico, while six were tied to basketball betting in the United States. Two additional alerts related to football betting were recorded in Jamaica.
In Europe, there were 15 alerts, predominantly related to table tennis—nine of which originated from the Czech Republic and Germany. Other sports also contributed to the alert total across various countries.
South America contributed significantly with 11 alerts, primarily connected to football betting in Brazil, which matched Mexico’s count for the highest alert total from a single nation. Additionally, single alerts for football and tennis were noted in Ecuador and Argentina, respectively.
Africa noted six alerts, all pertaining to football, with the Ivory Coast leading with three. Alerts were also recorded in Algeria, Burundi, and Tunisia.
Interestingly, Australasia reported no alerts, although the IBIA did issue four global alerts tied to esports, which could not be linked to specific territories due to the nature of event hosting.
Positive Trends in Tennis Alerts, Concerns Persist for Table Tennis
Khalid Ali, CEO of the IBIA, commented on the findings, highlighting the consistency in alert numbers across quarters. He expressed relief regarding the decrease in tennis-related alerts but also voiced apprehension over table tennis betting.
“The quarter-on-quarter decrease in tennis alerts reflects a significant improvement over the past few years,” Ali noted, mentioning that the spike in table tennis alerts from Q4 2024 did not carry over into the first quarter of 2025.
To combat rising concerns in table tennis, the IBIA has strengthened its integrity measures. New partnerships and protocols were initiated in Q1, aiming to detect and address corrupt betting practices.
The IBIA collaborates with over 80 entities spanning more than 140 global betting brands, capturing around 50% of all regulated online betting activities and 30% of the regulated online betting landscape, both retail and online.