June 15 – The confederation may be in turmoil but the battle against match-fixing is on-going. This weekend CONCACAF hosted its Integrity Workshop training session in Guyana for the first time.
The two-day workshop was aimed at clubs in the upcoming Elite League and administrators and conducted by CONCACAF Integrity Officers.
CONCACAF, in concert with Interpol, has now trained more than 3,350 people throughout the confederation. An impressive number in a short space of time in a confederation that has hit the headlines in the past few weeks for the alleged corrupt behaviour of former officials.
“In the fight against match manipulation in sports, prevention and education is key. In order to strengthen our Member Associations, we send out our INTERPOL certified CONCACAF Sports Integrity Officers to conduct training workshops across the region. Through the workshop in Guyana, we are able to provide the players, referees and officials of the Guyana Football Federation with special, tailored, face-to-face training about the threat of match-fixing,” said CONCACAF director of integrity Dr Laila Mintas.
In Guyana the eight clubs participating in the GFF Elite League met on the first days on an individual basis, along with the Guyana Senior National men’s football team.
The referees and affiliates of the GFF gathered on the second day. The workshops focus on the facets of match-fixing with the objective of protecting the game’s participants from organised criminals.
Training covered techniques used by match-fixers to contact players and referees, tactics to resist approaches and the CONCACAF Integrity Reporting Mechanism.
The workshop provided two different channels for individuals to report match manipulation incidents in a confidential and anonymous manner. It also reviewed the CONCACAF Code of Ethics.
Interpol took the surprise step of suspending relations with FIFA last week in the fight against match-fixing. FIFA was contributing $20 million to Interpol for help with its integrity programme targeted at match-fixing. The police body have not returned the money but have suspended further spend from this budget. Interpol’s German chief Jurgen Stock said the reason for the withdrawal was due to FIFA’s damaged brand image. A peculiar reason for halting co-operation to overcome crime in what is probably the biggest threat to the integrity of the game.
Contact the writer of this story at moc.l1734899777labto1734899777ofdro1734899777wedis1734899777ni@no1734899777slohc1734899777in.lu1734899777ap1734899777