Oceania

Sport Integrity Australia has agreed a new alliance with the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) to ensure that it is equipped to deal with integrity threats to Australian sport. The new partnership will ‘deliver a broad range of intelligence capabilities and information sharing’ to protect sporting integrity and combat potential corruption threats. Sport Integrity Australia Chief Executive Officer David Sharpe …

Victoria Police has confirmed that two individuals have been charged with attempting to corrupt at least two tennis tournaments in Brazil and Egypt in 2018, after they were found to be a part of an international tennis match-fixing syndicate. Reported by the Sydney Morning Herald, the India-headquartered syndicate is allegedly responsible for using low-ranked players from Europe and South America …

The New Zealand Transport and Infrastructure Select Committee has proposed that changes are made to the charges imposed for the use of betting information in a bid to limit data used by offshore bookmakers. Over 30 changes to the Racing Industry Bill were proposed by the Select Committee as it submitted its report to the House of Parliament, with the …

Tabcorp Holdings has reached an agreement with its US debt holders which will allow the ASX gambling group to defer payments on its debt covenants.  Last month, Tabcorp communicated that it had entered negotiations with US debt holders to obtain new ‘covenant terms’ on its corporate debt tranche of AUS $2.1 billion, maximising financial flexibility as it looks to navigate …

New South Wales Police have charged two individuals in connection with a NRL Dally M Medal Awards betting scandal. Reported on the Sydney Morning Herald, Joshua Wilson, 29, and Ben Trevisiol, 31, were charged with using inside information to bet on Melbourne Storm coach Craig Bellamy before he won the 2019 Coach of the Year award. Both Wilson and Trevisiol …

Betfair Australia has inked an eleventh-hour deal with the National Rugby League (NRL), allowing punters to bet against each other as the season restarts. The agreement comes despite Betfair’s prediction that its turnover will drop due to its commission being ‘four times more expensive than the AFL’. Reported by the Sydney Herald, Betfair had previously refused to sign an integrity …

Tabcorp Holdings has informed investors that the company will sanction no dividend in relation to financial-year 2020 trading. The firm has been forced to terminate the 2020 dividend (fiscal year ending 30 June) as part of its agreed terms with bank lenders, allowing the ASX betting group to waiver approximately AUS $2.2 billion (€1.3bn) of debt covenants until 2021.  Updating …

New Zealand’s Racing Industry Transition Agency (RITA) has confirmed that it will be launching a consultation focusing on changes to the TAB as a result of COVID-19. Changes include a 30% reduction on staff numbers, as well as other cost saving measures aimed at reducing total expenditure. RITA Executive Chair, Dean McKenzie, emphasised that the changes are required to ensure …

Australia ASX-listed gambling technology group Aristocrat Leisure has confirmed that it will stand down 1,000 members of staff as it seeks to mitigate the impact of COVID-19. In a statement, Aristocrat confirmed that the majority of those that will be stood down are based in the US, where the company has the majority of its staff, but has also stood …

Australian online bookmaker BetEasy will be absorbed by Sportsbet.au as part of the merger between respective parent groups The Stars Group (TSG) and Flutter Entertainment. Reported by The Australian, BetEasy is due to cease operations and begin operating under the Sportsbet banner. A spokesperson for Sportsbet said: “Flutter currently intends to pursue a single brand strategy for its Australian operation. …