The recent suspension of John Higgins is a wake-up call for anyone who thought that snooker is not susceptible to match-fixing. If the World No1 is at it then everyone could be at it. And snooker is not the only sport vulnerable to the odd thrown match – because wherever money is involved, dark forces will be looking to make a quick buck.
The evolution of the £30bn global online gambling business has seen many a short-sighted observer point the finger at the industry for being the cause of these problems – but gambling is not the villain here. As Dante said, avarice is the root of all evil, punishable by a grizzly fate in the fourth circle of hell. Don’t remember him saying ‘owt about online gambling.
Sport needs to work with the self-monitoring online gambling companies, as some have with Betfair, to help police itself, rather than pretend that the problems can be ignored. Read more.
