Wimbledon chiefs have reportedly used undercover officers during the 2025 championships in order to catch illegal gambling agents. By Sunday evening, well over 500,000 fans are expected to have come through the gates this month at SW19, but not all tennis goers have done so for legitimate reasons.
The notion of live betting has become a growing phenomenon in tennis and other sports. There are multiple options to place money during contests through mobile phones, tablets, and other devices. However, individuals and groups are now said to be taking advantage of that while sitting courtside.
According to The Standard, gambling agents try to profit by placing bets in the stands before the scores appear on television. Many of the perpetrators are perceived to be working for organised crime groups and using modified phones to place their guaranteed bets.
Offenders are even said to have been hiding devices in their shoes in order to mask any suspicious activity. Each fan is subjected to bag checks upon arrival, and staff also reserve the right to manually search individuals.
As a result, organisers have dedicated a team of ‘scouts’ to identifying offenders and gathering intelligence on repeat offenders. Furthermore, Wi-Fi blocks have restricted access to gambling websites, and a no-fly zone prevents drones from hovering above the courts during play.
The clampdown appears to have been a success. One scammer was reportedly caught before even reaching a court and ejected shortly after entering the gates.
One source was quoted as saying: “Wimbledon is a Fort Knox of propriety and fairness. We go to great lengths to stop people exploiting our sport in any way, including by taking advantage of any unavoidable technical issue to make money.
“It takes a great deal of time, effort and expertise to monitor courtsiders whose activities have increased rapidly with the rise in in-play gambling. Rather than simply betting on the outcome of individual matches or who will win the championships, syndicates now gamble on the outcome of individual sets, games or even individual points.”