Ex-FIFA security chief wants global intelligence body to combat match fixing

Chris Eaton – formerly FIFA’s Head of Security – believes that football needs a global intelligence body to tackle match fixing as the game is in “crisis”, he was talking to BBC Sport.

The Singapore police arrested 14 people, including the alleged leader, said to be a part of a gang involved in global match-fixing.Officials have identified 680 matches between 2008 and 2011 that they suspect have been fixed.

This comes after the Australian police made arrests earlier in the month in a separate investigation regarding match fixing.

Chris Eaton says that a ‘global intelligence system’ would see information shared more easily and action taken faster.

Europol, the European police agency, had announced in February that hundreds of matches worldwide, including UEFA Champions League matches and FIFA World Cup Qualifiers had been linked with a match-fixing syndicate.

Then in March all 22 South conference clubs were contacted by the FA after they became suspicious of the betting patterns in the division.

“Football is in crisis, undoubtedly in lower leagues,” Eaton told BBC Sport. “It doesn’t mean it will always be in the lower leagues or that it is not going to return to international friendlies or competitions.”

Singaporean businessman Dan Tan has been arrested in the Singapore investigations and is believed to be the leader of a gang that is involved in match-fixing on a global scale.

While Eaton believes that the arrests in Singapore and Australia are significant, he says that more needs to be done.

“It is a strong message sent to criminal organisations who are operating in this field,” he said.

“It is very important because up until now, we’ve focused on players and match-fixers. But the real people who need to be caught are the people who are organising the betting fraud.”

Eaton also argued that a “global intelligence body” would allow “sport, bookmakers, sport betting regulators and police around the world to collectively get together and share information for these timely operations”.

“Sport can’t wait for these two or three-year investigations that Europe is common for,” he added.

Regarding the arrests in Singapore, a FIFA spokesman said:

“We are aware of the matter and will continue to monitor the situation. As the matter is ongoing, please understand we are not in a position to provide any further comment.

“Speaking generally, we welcome all actions taken by law enforcement bodies to bring the perpetrators of match manipulation to justice.”