Sports data and integrity solutions supplier Sportradar revealed in a press release today that Sportradar Integrity Services entered into a long-term agreement with the Austrian Football Federation (ÖFB).
UFDS to Safeguard Integrity in Austrian Football
The 6-year deal authorized the data technology company to deploy its bet monitoring solution, the Universal Fraud Detection System (UFDS), to safeguard the integrity of all football competitions in Austria governed by the national body.
The advanced bet monitoring system featuring a global team of experts and analysts will cover over 700 matches per season from the Austrian Regional Leagues to identify irregularity in betting patterns utilizing a sophisticated combination of mathematical models and machine learning algorithms.
In case any suspicious match is detected, the independently assessed and verified UFDS reports the match to its partner to ensure a level of global visibility in match-fixing. In the past 15 years, the system detected and reported over 5,400 suspicious matches across global sport, with more than 500 of these in 2020 alone.
Dr. Thomas Hollerer, general secretary of the ÖFB, outlined the danger for the world of sport nowadays presented by the issue of match-fixing, recognizing the obligations of the federation to keep the integrity of the sport.
“By working with Sportradar Integrity Services to monitor our competitions through its UFDS solution, we will have valuable oversight of global betting markets offered on our games.”
Dr. Thomas Hollerer, General Secretary, ÖFB
Dr. Hollerer then underlined the proven track record Sportradar holds in the field of sports integrity and the capabilities of the tech company’s bet monitoring solution to help the federation fulfill its integrity program over the duration period of the signed agreement.
“We are delighted to be working alongside the ÖFB and offering our expertise to help protect its domestic football matches against integrity related threats.”
Andreas Krannich, Managing Director, Sportradar Integrity Services
Heightened Level of Match-Fixing Risk
Sportradar Integrity Services managing director Krannich continued by noting the growing rate of integrity issues arising at lower level competitions in global football, mainly due to the challenges posed by the coronavirus outbreak which brought up the need for strong integrity measures to address the heightened level of risk.
”As a global leader in sports integrity services, we make it our top priority to work alongside our partners and support an effective framework to help minimize integrity related issues.”
Andreas Krannich, Managing Director, Sportradar Integrity Services
Andreas Krannich concluded by commending the Austrian Football Federation for its commitment to protecting the integrity of its domestic competitions display the signed UFSD agreement, and expressed that Sportradar Integrity Services would gladly lend its assistance to help it support its integrity program in the next 6 years.
The ÖFB is the latest national sports governing body to turn to Sportradar for integrity services, following in the footsteps of the Swedish Football Association (SvFF) and The Netherlands Olympic Committee Dutch Sports Federation (NOC*NSF) which signed UFDS agreements in March and April, respectively.