Oct 27, 2023
The educational videos in English, Danish, French, Italian and Spanish were designed as a part of the Erasmus+ project PROtect Integrity Online co-funded by the European Union. The videos incorporate the key messages from the previously revised Code of Conduct for Athletes and aim to educate the athletes as well as the broader sporting community on fighting against match fixing and corruption in sport.
The educational videos were created for eight player associations participating in the project and EU Athletes:
AJFS (men’s futsal, Spain):
AJFSF (women’s futsal, Spain):
RPI (Rugby, Ireland):
HSF (Handball, Denmark):
GIBA (Basketball, Italy):
AIP (Volleyball, Italy):
SNB (Basketball, France):
AJPH (Handball, France):
Jul 6, 2023
As a part of the Erasmus+ PROtect Integrity Online project, the new version of the Code of Conduct for Athletes was developed in cooperation with the project partners.
Two versions of the Code of Conduct were produced: a leaflet and a poster. The poster focuses on 5 key messages to educate players on fighting against match fixing and corruption in sport, while the leaflet includes short description in addition to the messages. The text has been reviewed to keep the messages clear, grab attention, and call to action. These materials will support the implementation of integrity education organised by the player associations involved in the project and will be used both online and during in-person team visits.
For instance, Rugby Players Ireland (RPI) has already started implementing anti-manipulation education to players with the help of the Code of Conduct.
The Code of Conduct is available in five languages and can be downloaded here.
The project researcher Pim Verschuuren from the University of Rennes 2 completed the Report on Mapping and Recommendations for Developing Education Materials. The report includes a review of existing education practices, literature review on integrity education, analysis on the anti-doping educational framework, and recommendations for the design, implementation and evaluation of education strategies.
The findings of the report have been considered during the update of the Code of Conduct and will continue to guide the development of education materials and the implementation of the education in the following months.
The Report on Mapping and Recommendations for Developing Education Materials is available here.
Jun 7, 2023
On the 7th of June 2023, all 10 partners of PROtect Integrity Online Erasmus Plus project gathered at Italian Basketball Players Association (GIBA) office in Bologna, Italy. The purpose of the meeting was to prepare to the key phase of the project: implementation of integrity education to professional athletes from 5 countries and 5 major team sports, covering more than 3 000 athletes every year.
The project focused on development and finalisation of deliverables which will be essential to the delivery of education: the report which will offer revue of the status quo when it comes to integrity education and provide recommendations for developing education programmes, Code of Conduct for Athletes in 5 different language versions, as well as supporting materials such as posters, leaflets and educational videos.
8 player associations will start the team visits this summer, making an important contribution to fighting against the match fixing and protecting the integrity of sport.
Apr 12, 2023
On the 31st of March, EU Athletes attended the 3rd International Sport4Impact Conference in Milan, Italy. The event gathered over 60 people to discuss the role of finance and private sectors to design and scale up policies and programs for driving social change through sport. The day before, on the 30th of March, EU Athletes also participated in a smaller pre-event to exchange ideas on creating regulations for prevention and countering crimes in sport in strict coordination with the law enforcement agencies.
During the conference, representatives from sport organisations, public bodies, and practitioners explored opportunities to better connect and cooperate with financial and private operators. The event was organised by IIISSS in cooperation with other partners and with the support of UNESCO. Sport4Impact Conference offered a setting for showcasing current cases and tools as well as potential solutions developed by financial and private sectors. Thanks to the organisers Paolo Bertaccini and Sabrina Vettorato for inviting EU Athletes to the conference.
On behalf of its members, EU Athletes advocated for recognition of the role and importance that athlete and player associations have in the prevention of competition manipulation, corruption and other types of wrongdoings in sport.
Player associations support athletes when it comes to their personal development, education, mental health and wellbeing. Education is an essential element in the prevention of crimes in sport, and player associations are the pioneers and leaders in developing and delivering education to athletes. Education is delivered to athletes by people who they know and trust, therefore, it has a greater impact on the athletes.
Player associations also work to engage in collective bargaining, ensure better working conditions and for athletes to practise sport and the respect of their rights, which all together positively influences the overall welfare of athletes and, hence, makes them less vulnerable to take part in competition manipulation. The work of player associations may further help to improve sport governance and the accountability of sport organisations towards the athletes.
At the same time, other sport stakeholders should understand, respect and support the essential role of player associations. Crimes in sport continue to expand to new locations and take new forms. To fight these wrongdoings effectively, national, European, and international stakeholders should come together, exchange their knowledge and practices.
In line with that EU Athletes is currently coordinating an Erasmus+ project PROtect Integrity Online co-funded by the European Union. The project brings together 8 player associations representing 5 major sports and the University of Rennes 2 as the research institution. PROtect Integrity Online focuses on researching, developing, implementing and evaluating the best ways to deliver integrity education to players, particularly related to fighting match-fixing and corruption in sport.
Jan 17, 2023
EU Athletes is happy to announce that PROtect Integrity Online project is close to the start, scheduled for early February 2023. PROtect Integrity Online project is an Erasmus+ project co-funded by the European Union. It will focus on researching, developing, implementing and evaluating the best ways to deliver integrity education, particularly related to fighting match-fixing and corruption in sport.
The project consortium is composed of 10 members, including 8 player associations representing 5 major team sports:
- AJSF (men’s futsal, Spain)
- AJFSF (women’s futsal, Spain)
- RPI (rugby union, Ireland)
- HSF (handball, Denmark)
- GIBA (basketball, Italy)
- AIP (volleyball, Italy)
- SNB (basketball, France)
- AJPH (handball, France)
EU Athletes acts as the coordinator of the project, and the University of Rennes 2 is the research institution.
PROtect Integrity Online is a continuation of more than a decade of EU Athletes’ work relating to match fixing and sports betting integrity, including two Erasmus+ projects: PROtect Integrity and PROtect Integrity Plus.
The first phase will consist of research tasks and will be concluded with a report on mapping and recommendations for education. Based on these recommendations and the partners’ output, online educational materials will be created during the second phase. The third phase will cover the implementation of the education via team visits complemented by online materials and social media. Finally, education will be evaluated and good practices will be put together into the Best Practice Booklet. Overall, the match-fixing education will be delivered by player associations to at least 5,800 athletes in Europe, through the blended face-to-face and online approach.
On February 9th, 2023, the project team will meet in Paris for an official kick-off meeting.
Dec 18, 2019
On the 13th of December at FIFPro House in Amsterdam, EU Athletes organized the wrap up meeting for the Protect Integrity Plus 2018, co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme, which aimed to adapt and implement the Red Button App in seven different countries and five sports. The app, previously developed by FIFPro and the Finnish Football Players Association (JPY), is a match-fixing reporting tool exclusively for athletes.
Over the two years, the project has involved 8 players associations across Europe: Hellenic Professional Volleyball Players Association (HPVPA), French Player Rugby Union (Provale), Danish Handball Players Association (HSF), Italian basketball Players Association (GIBA), Rugby Players Ireland (IRUPA), The Rugby Players Association (RPA), Spanish Futsal Male Players Association (AJFS) and the Spanish Futsal Female Players Association (AJFSF). The partners presented the Red Button App to the players during the team visits and encouraged them to report anything suspicious. The other actions implemented by the players unions concerned the social media campaign and grassroots videos to raise awareness among the youngest people about the importance of the integrity of sport. Furthermore, an academic research has been carried out by Professor Forrest, from University of Liverpool, through questionnaires and interviews with players and the entities designated as the recipients of the reports.
The final staff meeting, including EU Athletes, FIFPro, Finnish football players Associations (JPY) and the University of Liverpool, was focused on the overall project assessment, the evaluation of the partners’ performances and the recommendations for the final report. Furthermore, due to the encouraging results achieved, we decided, in accordance with our leading partners, to continue the project for a future development in other sports and countries, drawing the focus to different aspects that are crucial to make the project successful.
