Sport and corruption: concepts and typologies

• Author: Argyro Elisavet Manoli
• Pages: 12-17

12

3.0Sport and corruption: concepts and typologies

3.1Introduction

This section outlines the findings of the literature review regarding theoretical

developments on sport and corruption.

3.2Basic definitions of corruption

While there is no internationally agreed definition of corruption, it is often commonly

understood as the abuse of entrusted power for private gain. The United Nations

Convention against Corruption does not include a definition as it does recommend

criminalizing specific offences, namely: Bribery of Public Official, embezzlement, abuse of

functions, illicit enrichment and bribery / embezzlement in the private sector.

This study has found that the terms “match-fixing” and “competition fixing” have been

used by a number of different institutions

6 , as well as at the EU level7. National

regulations use a variety of different terms, including “sporting fraud” (e.g. India),

“corruption of players” (e.g. Malta), “bribery in sporting contests” (e.g. United States) or

“corrupt activities relating to sporting events” (e.g. South Africa).

The Council of Europe’s Convention against the Manipulation of Sports Competitions

(also known as the Macolin Convention) uses the term “manipulation of sports

competitions”. This terminology is also used by a number of international sports

organizations, including the IOC which adopted in 2015 the Olympic Movement Code on

the Prevention of the Manipulation of Competitions.

The majority of the existing literature on the topic of defining corruption comes from the

field of political corruption and illustrates the differing viewpoints of the definers. The

main definitions of corruption are collated in a table below (adapted from Gorse 2013).

Table 3.1Definitions of corruption

Definition

Source (author, year)

“The abuse of public roles or resources for

private benefit”

Johnston (2005)

“Behaviour which deviates from the formal

duties of a public role because of private

regarding (family, close private clique),

pecuniary or status gains, or violates rules

against the exercise of certain types of

private-regarding influence”

Nye (1967)

“An act done with the intent to give some

advantage inconsistent with official duty

and the rights of others”

Collins et al (2009)

“The pursuit of individual interests by one

or more organisational actors through the

intentional misdirection of organisational

resources or perversion of organisational

Lange (2008)

66KEA study (2012); IOC-UNODC st udy (2013); ICCS-Sorbonne study (2014); T MC Asser Institute Study

(2015)

77http://ec.europa.eu/sport/policy/organisation_of_sport/match_fixing_en.htm.