Betgenius found to have offered data on fraudulent Ukrainian football fixtures
Sports betting supplier says it fell victim to fraud as Ukrainian FA warns of match-fixing risk during Covid-19 pandemic
Betgenius has written to its bookmaker partners after supplying the live data for four fraudulent Ukrainian football matches in March.
The matches were offered by bookmakers including 188BET using a data feed by Betgenius, despite the Ukrainian FA insisting no matches took place due to Covid-19 restrictions.
The Ukrainian FA said in a statement: “We kindly inform you that any matches that will appear on bookmakers within the next month are ghost and created by illegal activities of the scouts who are also involved in a match-fixing process.
“We kindly ask you to refrain from offering any matches of Ukrainian football teams during the upcoming month, which may be considered as participation in organisation of match-fixing.”
Betgenius maintains the matches indeed did go ahead and that it is a victim of fraud, insisting scouts were present in the ground to record the live data of whichever matches took place.
Betgenius scouts are required to verify the authenticity of fixtures through audio and visual methods before collecting stats.
The four fixtures – played on 25 and 26 of March – included the teams FC Berdyansk, FC Lozovatka, Tavriya-Skif Rozdol and Melitopol Cherry.
The tournament was promoted on a Facebook page which has since been deleted.
Writing to partners, Betgenius said: “The fixtures were selected from what we deemed to be reliable sources using our thorough security measures and appeared to be legitimate friendlies organised by the clubs.
“We believe games did in fact take place, however it has become clear that they were of a fraudulent nature.”
The coronavirus pandemic has decimated the 2020 sporting calendar, leaving sports betting operators with very few events and markets to offer to consumers.
While some have suggested virtual events – like Saturday’s Grand National – as an alternative to fill the void, others are reliant on the handful of sporting events that are still scheduled to take place.
Some industry commentators believe the desperate nature of the situation is bound to create integrity issues. One sports betting supplier has reportedly offered market data on the Soap Soccer League, an amateur international competition played on an inflatable pitch full of soapy water.
“Imagine the clamour for content from operators – integrity thresholds will be getting lowered left, right and centre. It is a recipe for disaster,” said one source on the condition of anonymity.