An independent review of corruption in tennis found that the sport “faces a serious integrity problem” at its lower levels—a “tsunami,” according to one person interviewed—but did not determine there are widespread problems at ATP, WTA and Grand Slam tournaments.
The report released Wednesday showed no cover-up by tennis’ governing bodies of improper betting or match-fixing, although there were “errors made and opportunities missed,” Adam Lewis, a member of the three-lawyer review panel, said at a news conference in London.
Recommendations included putting an end to the International Tennis Federation’s sale of official live scoring data to betting companies, which creates an environment that encourages corruption; increasing transparency by making public the tournament appearance fees paid to some players; and expanding the staffing and reach of the Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU), the anti-corruption group established in 2008 after a surge of suspicious betting activity.