https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9220-7062
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Abstract
One of the key premises of the official sports integrity narrative is that the perception of widespread of corruption in sports leads to a decline in people’s interest in sports and to the consequent cultural and financial collapse of the sector. With evidence gathered through a representative survey conducted in Portugal, this article proves this premise to be inaccurate. Despite football being commonly perceived as a corrupt industry, the interest of fans remains unalterable regardless of gender, ideology, political preference, age, or place of residence. This article holds relevance in the ongoing discussion about the implications of sports integrity policy-making processes as it shows that maintaining supporters’ level of engagement is not significantly impacted by concerns over integrity itself. The conclusion discusses the ethical implications that this situation generates and proposes a series of recommendations to enhance integrity and good sports governance.
Correction Statement
This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank all the EPOCA project team, especially Luís de Sousa, Felippe Clemente, and Pedro Magalhães, for their helpful comments and input during the preparation of the article. Our sincere gratitude to them, to the FCT for funding EPOCA, and to the reviewers who gave us suggestions that have certainly improved this article.
Ethical approval
The authors have conducted their research in accordance with principles detailed by professional associations and treaties other than the World Medical Association Declaration of Helsinki such as the International Sociological Association’s (ISA) Code of Ethics.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Notes
1 An important day for the fight against corruption in Sport is September 1, 2019, when the Council of Europe Convention on the Manipulation of Sports Competitions entered into force. The so-called Macolin Convention has been considered the most effective political initiative for combating the problem as it calls for cooperation among all the relevant stakeholders and establishing a set of practical and political recommendations for the creation and promotion of institutional, legal and criminal structures to combat the scourge.
2 See also SportAccord, “Match-fixing: what are the dangers,” video accessible online. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23BdVV8Ow6o&list=PLlEubhMUJZnJvJ6_rbE GT_BlDrwMeNnV3&index = 4), last access 14/10/2023.
3 See for instance, Team Form (https://www.teamform.com/en/league-ranking/world); Global Football rankings (https://www.globalfootballrankings.com/) or Sport Unfold (https://www.sportsunfold.com/best-football-leagues-which-are-statistically-ranking-in-the-world/).
4 See FIFA Ranking: https://www.fifa.com/fifa-world-ranking/POR Last access 14/10/2023.
5 Calciopoli was a match-fixing scandal revealed in 2006 that affected the Italian top professional football leagues, Serie A and B. The affair was uncovered when several telephone recordings showed questionable relations and conflict of interest among team managers, football governing bodies and the refereeing council. The investigation discovered a corrupted election and appointment of referees.
6 At the time of the study, Sporting Club of Portugal was one of the clubs that most emphatically denounced results manipulation campaigns against them. In March 2014, the then president, Bruno de Carvalho, had launched a campaign to “say enough” because, according to him, his club had been systematically harmed by arbitrations in recent years.
7 A case related to suspected crimes of qualified tax fraud, social security fraud and money laundering, linked to the conclusion or renewal of sports labour contracts, payment of commissions and financial circuits involving intermediaries in these deals, as well as the use of image rights. See: https://www.ojogo.pt/futebol/noticias/buscas-a-benfica-fc-porto-e-sporting-suspeitas-de-fraudes-que-ascendem-a-58-milhoes-16370725.html (Last access 14/10/2023).
8 Related with irregularities and frauds in the transfer markers. See https://www.publico.pt/2023/05/17/sociedade/noticia/autoridade-tributaria-faz-buscas-estadios-benfica-fc-porto-sporting-2049989 (Last access 15/10/2023).
9 See https://www.dn.pt/sociedade/e-toupeira-tribunal-aponta-determinacao-criminosa-para-condenar-paulo-goncalves-por-corrupcao-15888136.html (Last access 15/10/2023).
10 https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2021. That Index is one of me most used in social scientific research.
11 https://www.dinheirovivo.pt/iniciativas/futebol-domina-top-de-programas-mais-vistos-desde-o-inicio-do-ano–13826317.html (Last access 15/10/2023).
12 See https://desporto.sapo.pt/futebol/primeira-liga/artigos/pj-investiga-classificacoes-dos-arbitros-da-primeira-liga-de-futebol (Last access 14/10/2023).
13 See for instance https://desporto.sapo.pt/atualidade/artigos/antigo-arbitro-hugo-miguel-na-lista-de-suspeitos-investigados-por-alegados-subornos-do-benfica (Last access 15/10/2023).
14 See for example https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=escutas+apito+dourado (Last access 15/10/2023).
15 Project EPOCA, funded by the Portuguese Fundation for Science and Technology (FCT), and coordinated by Professors Luís de Sousa and Pedro Magalhães.
16 This variable corresponds to the question number 30. It goes as: Nos últimos anos, diria que o seu interesse por futebol tem aumentado muito, aumentado, nem aumentou nem diminuiu, diminuiu ou diminuiu muito? Translation: In recent years, would you say that his interest in football has increased a lot, increased, neither increased nor decreased, decreased or decreased a lot?
17 This is question number 31 of the survey, and it is stated as follows: Há quem diga que em Portugal a corrupção no futebol é muito rara, mas também quem diga que é muito frequente. Numa escala de 0 a 10, em que 0 significa que acha que a corrupção no futebol é muito rara, e 10 que acha que é muito frequente. Translation: There are those who say that in Portugal corruption in football is very rare, but also those who say that it is very frequent. On a scale of 0 to 10, where 0 means you think corruption in football is very rare, and 10 you think it's too frequent.
18 This variable corresponds to the question number 17. It goes as: Falando sobre a corrupção em Portugal nos últimos anos, diria que aumentou muito, aumentou, não aumentou nem diminuiu, diminuiu ou diminuiu muito? Translation: Talking about corruption in Portugal in recent years, would you say that it has increased a lot, increased, not increased or decreased, decreased or decreased a lot?
19 Terms like cognitive maps, folks’ theory or naive theory refer to the same basic concept (e.g., Dutke, Citation1994, p. 12).
20 An ordered logistic regression model leads to the same results.
21 For this reason, the survey dedicated some questions concerning corruption and football that were not made to other sectors.
22 We have dropped the variable regions when we introduce the club preferences as they are related.
23 Generation Z (or Gen Z) is the demographic cohort represented people born between mid to late 1990s as and the 2010s. Gen Z succeed Millennials and precede Generation Alpha.
24 Initials of Sociedade Anónima Desportiva, Public limited Sport Company in Portuguese. See: https://www.ojogo.pt/futebol/1a-liga/braga/noticias/consumada-a-entrada-da-qatar-sports-investments-na-sad-do-braga-15480051.html (Last access 14/10/2023).
25 See for instance https://jornalonline.pt/primeira-liga-nao-tem-interesse-para-canais-de-televisao-estrangeiros/ (Last access 14/10/2023).