AMPS sounds the alarm: Moroccan Sport in Danger!
RABAT, October 9, 2024 - Sports competitions were created with the goal of contributing to the healthy education of young generations, instilling in them a spirit of fair competition, ensuring equality for all, and eliminating any form of corruption that could harm the values of sports.
Today, in Morocco, as in many other countries, we face a growing threat: a plague that has turned into a real cancer, eating away at the heart of sports, targeting fair play and the integrity of competitions, regardless of the type.
This cancer, illegal sports betting, has unfortunately infiltrated Morocco and found a place outside of the legal framework. One of its most prominent forms is the 1XBet app, which exploits the digital space to target Moroccan society. This app allows minors and other vulnerable groups to engage in sports betting illegally, violating laws worldwide.
It is important to note that these illegal applications threaten not only Moroccan sports but also Moroccan society and the state’s sovereignty over a sector that many countries, including Morocco, have chosen to monopolize to prevent criminal and fraudulent activities.
These apps now target Moroccan children, turning them into easy prey in a digital space that is hard to regulate, with often opaque and criminal motivations behind the spread of this cancer of illegal betting.
We must also stress that these applications harm the Moroccan economy and its financial sovereignty, as their activities are unregulated, untaxed, and make no contribution to sports investment. On the contrary, they deplete Morocco’s foreign currency reserves, especially since illegal transactions made by Moroccans on these betting platforms rank second worldwide, behind Argentina.
It is also worth noting that illegal betting offers facilitate the involvement of players, club officials, and referees in manipulating the results of sports competitions, especially in football.
In light of the above, it is essential to recall that Morocco was one of the first countries in Africa and the region to ratify its adherence to the “Macolin” community, which met in Morocco on Tuesday, November 7, in Rabat, for a conference themed “Protecting the Integrity of Sport by Fighting Illegal Betting.”
This conference was held alongside the fifth meeting of the Copenhagen Group, organized in Rabat on November 8 and 9, 2023, as well as the consultative meeting of the Macolin Convention Monitoring Committee.
This convention, which came into force on September 1, 2019, primarily aims to combat the two greatest threats to sport and its integrity: doping and illegal betting. It has been ratified by France, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Norway, Portugal, the Republic of Moldova, Switzerland, and Ukraine, and signed by 33 European countries, as well as Australia and Morocco.
This appeal, launched by the Moroccan Association of Sports Press, coincides with the upcoming session of the Copenhagen Group in Porto, Portugal, in connection with the adoption of the Macolin Convention. Morocco will participate with a high-level delegation.
Therefore, we take this opportunity to call on stakeholders to accelerate the ratification and implementation of the Macolin Convention. We also urge all actors involved in addressing the issues targeted by this convention to commit seriously and responsibly to achieving its goals.
We reaffirm Morocco’s leadership in this area, as the only African country to choose the path of protecting sports practices and safeguarding societies from the exploitation of competitions for criminal purposes.
As a key actor in the sports field, AMPS warns that illegal sports betting has evolved from a scourge to a cancer eating away at societies. This phenomenon even serves as a cover for criminal practices, including the sexual exploitation of minors, as revealed in the “Beirut Barber” case in Lebanon, and the involvement of organ trafficking networks, as evidenced by numerous investigations by our fellow journalists in Egypt. These investigations have uncovered alarming cases of suicides linked to illegal betting apps, most of the victims being minors and young people, leading the Egyptian state to ban these apps and criminalize their use.
Rabat, October 8, 2024
The Moroccan Association of Sports Press (AMPS)
Today, in Morocco, as in many other countries, we face a growing threat: a plague that has turned into a real cancer, eating away at the heart of sports, targeting fair play and the integrity of competitions, regardless of the type.
This cancer, illegal sports betting, has unfortunately infiltrated Morocco and found a place outside of the legal framework. One of its most prominent forms is the 1XBet app, which exploits the digital space to target Moroccan society. This app allows minors and other vulnerable groups to engage in sports betting illegally, violating laws worldwide.
It is important to note that these illegal applications threaten not only Moroccan sports but also Moroccan society and the state’s sovereignty over a sector that many countries, including Morocco, have chosen to monopolize to prevent criminal and fraudulent activities.
These apps now target Moroccan children, turning them into easy prey in a digital space that is hard to regulate, with often opaque and criminal motivations behind the spread of this cancer of illegal betting.
We must also stress that these applications harm the Moroccan economy and its financial sovereignty, as their activities are unregulated, untaxed, and make no contribution to sports investment. On the contrary, they deplete Morocco’s foreign currency reserves, especially since illegal transactions made by Moroccans on these betting platforms rank second worldwide, behind Argentina.
It is also worth noting that illegal betting offers facilitate the involvement of players, club officials, and referees in manipulating the results of sports competitions, especially in football.
In light of the above, it is essential to recall that Morocco was one of the first countries in Africa and the region to ratify its adherence to the “Macolin” community, which met in Morocco on Tuesday, November 7, in Rabat, for a conference themed “Protecting the Integrity of Sport by Fighting Illegal Betting.”
This conference was held alongside the fifth meeting of the Copenhagen Group, organized in Rabat on November 8 and 9, 2023, as well as the consultative meeting of the Macolin Convention Monitoring Committee.
This convention, which came into force on September 1, 2019, primarily aims to combat the two greatest threats to sport and its integrity: doping and illegal betting. It has been ratified by France, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Norway, Portugal, the Republic of Moldova, Switzerland, and Ukraine, and signed by 33 European countries, as well as Australia and Morocco.
This appeal, launched by the Moroccan Association of Sports Press, coincides with the upcoming session of the Copenhagen Group in Porto, Portugal, in connection with the adoption of the Macolin Convention. Morocco will participate with a high-level delegation.
Therefore, we take this opportunity to call on stakeholders to accelerate the ratification and implementation of the Macolin Convention. We also urge all actors involved in addressing the issues targeted by this convention to commit seriously and responsibly to achieving its goals.
We reaffirm Morocco’s leadership in this area, as the only African country to choose the path of protecting sports practices and safeguarding societies from the exploitation of competitions for criminal purposes.
As a key actor in the sports field, AMPS warns that illegal sports betting has evolved from a scourge to a cancer eating away at societies. This phenomenon even serves as a cover for criminal practices, including the sexual exploitation of minors, as revealed in the “Beirut Barber” case in Lebanon, and the involvement of organ trafficking networks, as evidenced by numerous investigations by our fellow journalists in Egypt. These investigations have uncovered alarming cases of suicides linked to illegal betting apps, most of the victims being minors and young people, leading the Egyptian state to ban these apps and criminalize their use.
Rabat, October 8, 2024
The Moroccan Association of Sports Press (AMPS)
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