MGA Sports Betting Integrity Manager looks back at department’s 2021 successes

Antonio Abdilla Zerafa, Sports Betting Integrity Manager at the Malta Gaming Authority’s (MGA), took to social media to look back at some of his department’s greatest successes throughout 2021.

Mr Abdilla Zerafa joined the MGA in 2015 as an Enforcement Directorate Intern. He was promoted to Due Diligence Department Administrator four months later and consistently worked his way up until he was appointed Sports Betting Integrity Manager in January 2020.

“Let’s make 2022 a year to remember! The Sports Betting Integrity team at the Malta Gaming Authority cannot help but feel motivated and looking forward to all the challenges to come in 2022; especially when looking back at all that we have accomplished during 2021,” the Manager wrote.

Amongst other things, Mr Abdilla Zerafa noted, the Sports Betting Integrity department “brought forward the Suspicious Betting Reporting Requirements,” “received more than 300 suspicious betting reports from across the Maltese betting sector,” and “corresponded more than 80 reports on sports events that were deemed as suspicious from a betting perspective.”

Last month, Mr Abdilla Zerafa was also chosen to represent the islands at the International Forum of Sports Integrity, organised by the Olympic Committee.

“[The Sports Betting Integrity department] set up increased monitoring mechanisms during major sports events such as UEFA Euro 2020 and the Tokyo Summer Olympics; we continued to sign data sharing agreements with various key stakeholders in the sports sector to better facilitate data-sharing, [and we] worked with the UNODC to review chapters from their recently published ‘Global Report on Corruption in Sport,” the Manager added.

In light of this, Mr Abdilla Zerafa noted that “[these achievements] would not have been possible without the dedication and commitment of our licensed operators, integrity partners, and sports governing bodies.” The Sports Betting Integrity Manager also serves as a Casual Visiting Lecturer, Supervisor, and Examiner at the University of Malta.