Gambling’s role in modern sports integrity violations: a commentary on current policies and events

The proliferation of legalised sports betting worldwide has led to new challenges for safeguarding the integrity of elite competitions. While gambling prohibition has largely given way to regulation, policies and enforcement strategies vary considerably across international and domestic contexts, leaving gaps in the protection against gambling-related manipulation. This paper reviews theoretical frameworks of sports integrity, highlights international and U.S. cases of competition manipulation, and examines the legal and regulatory landscapes governing sports betting. Evidence from monitoring organisations such as Sportradar and the International Betting Integrity Association suggests that while detected incidents of gambling-related corruption in sports represent a small fraction of all competitions, significant risks remain underreported, especially in fragmented or illegal gambling markets. Current policy debates concerning in-game betting, micro-bets, and athlete-specific proposition bets also highlight the tension between economic benefits and integrity risks associated with this issue. This paper concludes with a discussion about strengthening integrity protections, including harmonised regulatory standards, improved data-sharing mechanisms, and proactive monitoring of vulnerable leagues and athletes.