The Theresa May government on Thursday signed the Macolin Convention to tackle match-fixing in sport at a summit attended by over 100 sports ministers, international sports organizations and experts to deal with the controversial issue.
The Council of Europe Convention on the Manipulation of Sports Competitions – commonly known as the Macolin Convention – aims to prevent, detect and punish match fixing.
It was signed by minister for sports Mims Davies with Gabriella Battaini Dragoni, Council of Europe deputy secretary-general. Official sources said the convention is the only treaty dedicated to fighting the manipulation of sports competitions.
Davies said: “Match-fixing is a real threat to the integrity of sport. It is a crime that robs spectators of the pleasure of watching a contest that they can trust. While I’m confident that we have a robust system in place to prevent match-fixing, we cannot be complacent”.
“It is a cross-border issue, and only through a coordinated international effort can we mitigate the risks”.
Dragoni added: “This treaty is the only international legally-binding instrument against match-fixing, illegal betting, bad governance, insider information, conflicts of interests and the use of clubs as shell companies”.
The convention encourages sports organisations and competition organisers to put appropriate measures in place such as adopting principles of good governance and educating athletes.
Attendees at the three-day International Partnership Against Corruption in Sport include representatives from the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics, the British Olympic Association and British Paralympic Association, Interpol and the Commonwealth Games Federation.
First Published: Dec 06, 2018 19:02 IST
Source: HindustanTimes