Match fixing in Italy, ADM and CONI agree new guidelines
A further step forward has been taken in the fight against match fixing in Italy. The Italian Customs and Monopolies Agency (ADM) and the General Prosecutor’s Office for Sport at the Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI) have signed a joint document establishing new operational guidelines to accelerate and structure efforts to combat the manipulation of sporting competitions. The agreement focuses on monitoring betting, identifying those involved, and cooperating with federal prosecutors’ offices.
The development does not concern a specific match or a new match-fixing case, but rather the organisation of the system through which potentially suspicious situations can be reported, analysed, and referred to sports justice bodies. It therefore strengthens cooperation between the authority responsible for overseeing Italy’s betting sector and the bodies tasked with investigating potential violations by athletes, executives, coaches, or other individuals in the sports system.
How the new exchange of information will work
The new cooperation mechanism is set out in the operational guidelines signed by ADM and the General Prosecutor’s Office for Sport at CONI. These govern the methods, timing, and content of information exchanges in the event of potential anomalies involving sports betting.
When ADM’s monitoring systems identify unusual betting activity linked to a particular event, the information is passed to the General Prosecutor’s Office for Sport. The office can then request further details about the bets and the accounts involved to determine whether they are directly or indirectly connected to people who belong to or are affiliated with sports federations.
The information may also include account holders’ personal details and evidence linking suspicious transactions to people involved in sport. Once the documents have been received, the General Prosecutor’s Office for Sport sends them to the prosecutor’s office of the relevant federation. The federal prosecutor can then decide whether to open disciplinary proceedings, based on clearer information about the event under investigation and the individuals who may be involved.
The procedure may also be initiated when the original report does not come directly from ADM. Where a federal prosecutor’s office opens a case based on a qualified report received from another party, the agency may be asked to verify whether there were any unusual betting flows associated with the event.
More technology to tackle match fixing
The new system should shorten the time between the detection of suspicious betting activity and the launch of an internal investigation by the sports authorities. A sudden rise in stakes or an unusual betting pattern is not, on its own, proof of match fixing. However, better access to shared data could help the authorities identify more quickly whether the activity is normal or requires further investigation.
Technology is another key part of the new approach. ADM says it is developing AI-powered tools to improve its analysis and monitoring of sports betting data. These tools are intended to identify recurring patterns, unusual activity, and possible links among betting accounts, sporting events, and the people involved.
The signing of the guidelines is primarily an organisational step. It does not create a new criminal offence or relate to any single match-fixing case. Instead, it sets out clearer procedures, responsibilities and channels of communication between ADM, the General Prosecutor’s Office for Sport and the prosecutors’ offices of individual federations. The aim is to improve coordination, strengthen the prevention of match fixing and protect the integrity and credibility of sporting competitions.
This article was originally published on the Italian SiGMA News page on 29 July 2026.
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