The International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) noted 70 instances of suspicious wagering activity during Q1 2026 in its first report of the year.
IBIA’s members include more than 90 companies with over 200 betting platforms scattered across five continents.
Key Takeaways
- Europe and North America were at the center of nearly half of the logged suspicious activity.
- The organization noted 300 instances of suspicious betting activity last year.
- Brazil was identified as a country of concern because of its shifting gaming landscape and market size.
The IBIA’s newest report detailed the locations, sports, and history of suspicious bets tracked by the Brussels, Belgium-headquartered company. Its quarterly releases highlight incidents detected by its Global Monitoring & Alert Platform (Global MAP), such as match-fixing, which helps gaming regulators and authorities investigate illegal activity.
Europe was responsible for a leading 20 (28%) of questionable wagers that were tracked. North America was second with 14 (20%), followed by Asia with nine (13%). Africa and South America were both at the center of six (9%) incidents.
Additionally, global eSports triggered 15 (21%) integrity alerts. eSports is not tied to a specific region or continent since competitions can transcend one location.
Soccer bettors set off the most alarm bells for the IBIA with 25 (36%) suspicious alerts. Twelve of those came from North America, and specifically, eight of them from Mexico. That represented the most documented incidents of any one country in any particular sport.
The next-highest team sport, volleyball, only produced two (3%) alerts. Tennis and table tennis caused the second - and third-most alerts with 16 (24%) and seven (10%), respectively.
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Brazil seen as a country of interest
The IBIA has become aware of the increasing frequency of illicit betting. The organization reported 300 alerts during 2025, representing a 29% year-over-year increase in the total reported in 2024.
A total of 63 suspicious alerts were also identified during Q1 2025, meaning that this year’s total is already 11% ahead of last year’s.
“The greater scale and reach of our Global Monitoring & Alert Platform means our ability to detect, assess, and support investigations across markets and sports has increased,” Khalid Ali, CEO of IBIA, said in the 2025 report. “This is driven by operator intelligence generated by our membership and their continued commitment to identifying, disrupting, and preventing betting-related corruption.”
While the increasing totals reflect the IBIA’s growing global presence and analytical capabilities, they also demonstrate the growing danger in sports and sports betting.
Brazil is shaping up to be a particular country of concern for the IBIA. There were 68 suspicious alerts that were initiated in the South American giant from 2021-25, 51 of those stemming from soccer matches.
That’s significant, as Brazil is expected to see a strong shift from unregulated offshore to regulated onshore activity, following regulatory changes introduced in 2025. The overall sports betting market is expected to steadily increase to BRL 28.8 billion ($4.7 billion) in gross gaming revenue by 2030, with more than 80% of that coming from legal and licensed operators.
The IBIA also projected that Brazil will produce 39% of Latin America’s total gaming GGR in 2026, nearly doubling Mexico’s 21% and crushing Argentina (13%).
Cleaning up the market
The IBIA operates with several key principles. Its technology allows it to collaborate with sports leagues, regulators, and relevant officials; it offers training and education; and ultimately, it helps detect abnormal wagers.
The organization's growing efforts have resulted in it tracking more than 1.5 million sports events in over 80 different sports per annum. Total analyzed customer activity also exceeds more than $300 billion annually.
