Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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Rick Parry appointed to head new sports betting integrity panel
The panel, which will bring together representatives from the betting industry, the police, players, fans, sports governing bodies, the legal profession and the Gambling Commission, will address issues threatening the integrity of sport.
This will involve assessing the current rules on sports betting to ensure they are as robust as possible, ensuring better communications between those involved in tackling sports betting corruption, as well as the education of sportsmen and women on the issue.
The panel will be asked to examine the scale of the current risk to sports’ integrity through betting corruption, including how suspicious betting patterns are identified and assessed, in markets within and outside the UK.
Gerry Sutcliffe has asked the panel to report within six months with a clear set of recommendations to help uphold integrity in sports and associated betting.
Panel membership
- Rick Parry, Chief Executive of Liverpool FC (Chair)
- Darren Bailey, Director of Football Governance and Regulation at the Football Association
- Simon Barker, Director of the Professional Players Federation and ex-professional footballer
- Dave Boyle, Chief Executive, Supporters Direct
- Nic Coward, Chief Executive of the British Horseracing Authority
- Chris Caisley, Head of Sports Law Group and Partner at Walker Morris
- Mark Davies, Managing Director of Betfair
- Ben Gunn CBE, QPM, sport integrity expert
- Mike O’Kane, Group Trading Director, Ladbrokes
- Ian Seabridge, Assistant Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police and ACPO lead on Gambling
- Mike Smith, Chairman, Tote
- Bill South, Director of Security, William Hill
- Nick Tofiluk, Director of Regulation, Gambling Commission
Minister for Sport Gerry Sutcliffe said:
“I am delighted that Rick Parry has agreed to lead this vitally important work. His expertise in the nation’s most high profile sport, along with that of the other panel members, will give this project the impetus it needs to tackle sports betting corruption head-on.
“We cannot be complacent and need to act now to prevent this becoming a real threat to the integrity of sport. There are some complex issues involved and this is by no means an easy task, but I have great confidence in the panel and I look forward to hearing the recommendations.”
Rick Parry said:
“Integrity and sport must go hand-in-hand and anything that threatens that bond of trust has to be stamped out. The panel assembled by Gerry Sutcliffe has a wealth of experience and knowledge and I am confident that we can build on the work already done to ensure we have the toughest possible approach to corruption – protecting and preserving the reputation of sport.”
Gambling Commission Chairman Brian Pomeroy said:
“I want to welcome Rick Parry and the other members of the expert panel and look forward to sharing with them the benefit of our expertise on betting integrity in the British market.
"I support this initiative strongly which brings together those whose work keeps British sport free of corruption.
“By acting in concert against the threat to integrity, the betting industry, sports bodies, players and their representatives, police forces, the Gambling Commission and others can achieve much more than any of us alone."
Notes to editors
1. A Written Ministerial Statement on the betting integrity panel is available on the DCMS website: http://www.culture.gov.uk/reference_library/minister_speeches/6237.aspx
2. Biographies of panel representatives
Rick Parry, Chief Executive, Liverpool Football Club
Chief Executive of Liverpool FC, Rick Parry, joined the Club in 1997, having supported them since childhood. He spent the previous six years as Chief Executive of the Premier League. Parry is to step down as Chief Executive of Liverpool FC at the end of this month.
Having graduated in Mathematics from the University of Liverpool in 1976, Rick trained as a Chartered Accountant with Arthur Young McLelland Moores. He became a management consultant and carried out a variety of projects in the sports and leisure industry.
Darren Bailey, Director of Football Governance and Regulation, Football Association
Building on a football and coaching background, including signing for Chelsea as an associate schoolboy at 14, Darren has continued to pursue his twin interests in sport and the law.
Darren was formerly head of the sports governance and commercial department of a leading sports law firm where he worked across a range of sports and major events before being appointed as the first in-house counsel for the International Rugby Board. There he established the legal department and ultimately became Head of Legal & Legislative Affairs. In rugby, his roles included acting as legal adviser on the 2003 and 2007 Rugby World Cups and drafting and implementing new global regulations.
Darren’s responsibilities include The FA's disciplinary, football regulation, regulatory legal advice, financial regulation, doping control and equality & child protection functions.
Simon Barker, Director of the Professional Players Federation and ex-professional footballer
Simon Barker is a Director of the Professional Players Federation (PPF) and a senior executive at the Professional Footballers Association (PFA). He can provide direct experience of professional football as well as an excellent understanding of the issues facing the other professional sports within the umbrella of the PPF. Simon also played professional football for Blackburn Rovers and QPR in the 1980s and 1990s.
Dave Boyle, Chief Executive, Supporters Direct
Dave Boyle has worked for Supporters Direct since 2000 in various capacities, most recently as Deputy Chief Executive and Society Secretary. He has written and lectured widely on issues relating to football's governance and is a fellow of the RSA.
Mark Davies, Managing Director, Betfair
Mark Davies was part of Betfair’s founder-management team. He joined Betfair in March 2000 before its launch, and is one of the company's Managing Directors.
He began his career as a bond trader for JP Morgan, before leaving to pursue a career in the media, where he worked for BBC Radio and Television and the Daily Telegraph.
He has played a key role in most of Betfair’s major milestones in the last eight years, developing the much-talked-about Memorandums of Understanding with sporting bodies around the world, and leading the company’s work with the UK Government in the run-up to the Gambling Act 2005.
He is Betfair’s most regular spokesman at conferences, on television and on radio.
Chris Caisley, Partner, Walker Morris Lawyers – Head of Sports Law Group
Chris joined Walker Morris in 1978 and was appointed partner in 1979. Chris is a senior dispute resolution partner and is the Head of Litigation. He has played a significant role in the substantial growth of the Litigation Group and WM Claims, the firm's high volume Personal Injury Claims department. Chris also heads up the firm's hugely successful Sports Law Group and acts for a number of sports personalities and sports clubs.
His recent work includes acting for Steve McLaren when he moved to become the FA England Manager, Theo Walcott following his move to Arsenal, sports broadcasting rights, contract negotiations and disputes, personality merchandising, licensing agreements, and sponsorship contracts for sports persons, clubs and associations. Chris is the former Chairman of Bradford Bulls Rugby Club and during his reign the club became the most successful rugby league club in the Super League era, winning four Championships, two Challenge Cups and three World Club Championships as well as appearing in six other major finals.
He is the former Deputy Chairman of the Rugby Football League and was the Chairman of the Rugby Super League for several years until 2002. Chris is also Vice Consul for the Netherlands for Yorkshire and Derbyshire.
Nic Coward, Chief Executive, British Horseracing Authority
Nic Coward is the first CEO of the British Horseracing Authority, the governing and regulatory body for British Racing established in 2007. Nic, who qualified as a solicitor with Freshfields, was previously with The Football Association for 8 years as Corporate and Legal Affairs Director, and almost 2 years as Acting CEO. In 2004 he set up a consultancy working with sports governing bodies of rugby union, rugby league, cricket and tennis.
He was also a special adviser to the board of the Premier League on governance and regulation, and chairing its Media and IP Group. During this time he was also Treasurer of the CCPR, and a director of Sport Resolution UK. Nic has chaired the meetings of the Sports Rights Owners Coalition since it started in 2006.
Ben Gunn CBE, QPM - Sport Integrity Expert
Ben Gunn was Chief Constable of Cambridgeshire from 1993 to 2002, having previously served in the Metropolitan Police from 1963 to 2002, principally in the Special Branch dealing with counter-terrorism and subversion.
On his retirement from the police he was appointed Chairman of the Joint Jockey Club/British Horseracing Board Security Review which reported on the Integrity of Horseracing in Great Britain in 2003. Since 2004 he has been a Commissioner of the Gambling Commission and its
predecessor, the Gaming Board for Great Britain.
In 2008 he jointly undertook a review of the integrity of professional tennis worldwide on behalf of the International Tennis Federation, the Association of Tennis Professionals, the Women's Tennis Association and the Grand Slam Committee.
He is a Non-Executive Director of the British Horseracing Authority as well as being senior partner in Campbell Gunn Associates, Consultants in Sports' Integrity.
Ben has had a lifelong interest and participated in a wide range of sports , particularly horseracing, cricket, rugby and boxing and is a Trustee of the Child Victims of Crime Charity.
Mike O’Kane, Trading Director, Ladbrokes
Mike joined Ladbrokes in 1975 as a trainee shop manager after finishing at University.
He progressed through the organisation becoming Retail Operations Director in 1998. During that time he was responsible for the 2000+ retail betting shops operated in the UK and Eire.
In 2004 he became Trading Director responsible for all business channels; retail, telephone and internet. As Trading Director he manages a team of market makers and traders, circa 120, covering all sports/events both in the UK and Ireland.
Mike is the Chairman of the Trustees for Ladbrokes in the Community Charitable Trust (L.I.C.C.T.), which has made a tremendous difference to the lives of thousands of people since its launch late in 2003. The ambition for 2009 is to break the £1 million fundraising barrier.
Ian Seabridge, Assistant Chief Constable, Association of Chief Police Officers lead on Gambling
Ian is an ACC at Greater Manchester Police, with responsibility for tackling serious and organised crime. He has been ACPO lead for gambling since 2006.
Mike Smith, Chairman, Tote
Mike Smith was appointed Chairman of the Tote on the 1 July 2008. He is currently the Chairman of Big Apple Entertainment Ltd. He has previously been the CEO of the Rank Group and Ladbrokes, and MD of William Hill.
Bill South, Director of Security, William Hill
Bill was appointed Director of Security at William Hill in October 2006 and has a wealth of practical investigation experience in sports betting integrity. He was a police officer for over 23 years, and was Chief Inspector of Cambridgeshire Police. In April 2004, he moved to the Jockey Club, then regulators of British horseracing, as Head of Intelligence, in charge of all intelligence matters and establishing a unit for this purpose. In 2005, he was seconded to the Gaming Board of Great Britain to assist during the transition period to the Gambling Commission, following the passage of the Gambling Act.
Nick Tofiluk, Director of Regulation, Gambling Commission
Nick Tofiluk is the Gambling Commission’s Director of Regulation. He is responsible for the development and delivery of the Commission’s licensing, compliance and enforcement functions, addressing both regulatory and criminal gambling issues.
Since joining the Commission in November 2007 Nick’s focus has been to ensure the effective integration of risk, intelligence and operational work, through managerial, regulatory and investigative collaboration.
Nick has a Masters degree in Applied Criminology from Cambridge University and served for 30 years as a police officer, from 2001 as Assistant Chief Constable with West Midlands Police. He has extensive operational and command experience within territorial, major crime and intelligence contexts. Nick also held regional responsibility for the Midlands Regional (Organised Crime) Task Force, Project Director for UK National Ballistics Intelligence Programme, Chair of the UK Firearms Intelligence Committee and vice chair of the UK Firearms Strategy Group. In March 2007, he was appointed UK national Programme Director for the IMPACT Programme.
