The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) has issued sanctions to two US tennis coaches, stating breached tennis’ betting sponsorship rules. Both Bob Bryan and Mardy Fish have been fined $10,000, and issued with four-month suspension bans, after admitting to promoting gaming operators on social media.
Both coaches cooperated with the ITIA investigation and removed the offending posts immediately. The suspensions will not come into force unless there is a further breach during the four-month period, which started on November 11.
Bryan and Fish are both accredited as being part of the US Davis Cup coaching team in 2022, which means they are classified as ‘covered persons.’ This means they are subject to the sport’s anti-corruption laws concerning betting operators.
Section D.1.b of the 2022 Tennis Anti-Corruption Programme rules states that:
“No Covered Person shall directly or indirectly, facilitate, encourage and/or promote Tennis Betting (‘Facilitation’).”
In addition to their fines and suspension bans, the two coaches have agreed to work with the ITIA to assist with the education and prevention initiatives. These initiatives highlight the importance of integrity in tennis.
The ITIA is an independent body established by the International Governing Bodies of Tennis. Its purpose is to promote, encourage, enhance and safeguard the integrity of professional tennis worldwide.
There has been recent controversy around the subject of the promotion of gambling in sporting environments. The New York Times described the ‘Caesarization’ of campus life, as big operators have made deals with various US universities to advertise their services during college football games.
Many critics question the ethics of advertising gambling on platforms that are available to, and popular with, underage viewers.
