French authorities will adopt new enforcement tools to fight corruption in sports, as new legislation classifies match fixing as an organised crime… 

The government of France has classified match-fixing in sports as seriously as organised crime under new amendments included in its law to fight drug trafficking and corruption activities undertaken with proceeds linked or related to drug dealing.

An amendment added in January as part of a bill targeting drug trafficking reclassified match-fixing from a minor offense to a serious crime. The law was approved on 13 June and cases will now be handled by specialised inter-jurisdictional courts (JIRS) that deal with complex criminal matters to enable deeper investigations into corruption in sport.

The law also grants investigators new enforcement tools such as wiretaps, hidden microphones, surveillance, undercover operations and prolonged detention periods. These were previously reserved for cases like drug trafficking, human trafficking and large-scale fraud.

Those convicted of match-fixing in France can now face up to 10 years in prison and fines reaching €1m.

The new measures cover corrupt activities undertaken by private citizens in a context of “passive bribery committed by a participant in a sporting event or horserace where bets are taken, and active bribery committed by a private individual in the direction of such a person”.

They are supported by the regulator Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) systems that record all wagering data to detect atypical bets and unusual odds. As part of the framework, ANJ can decide to ban betting on a competition if there are major indications of manipulation.

ANJ’s anti-match fixing monitoring and training teams meet every six weeks and its teams also train young athletes, magistrates and civil servants to assist them in identifying and detecting cases of sporting fraud linked to betting.