INTEGRITY IN SPORT
Giving sports corruption the boot
From World Cup grandeur to local club football , Christina Philippou is working to improve governance in the running of football and other sports , to safeguard the integrity that fans the world over demand .
Christina Philippou ’ s work to expose and challenge corruption in sport combines her two great passions : football and fighting financial fraud , wherever it is found . The former Corporate Forensic Accountant – and current Women ’ s Football Coach – has produced a definitive research-backed paper published in the Sport in Society journal to combat the type of corruption that has marred mega-events , including the Olympics and FIFA World Cups .
Vote-rigging to secure hosting rights , bribery , embezzlement and fraud were identified as common concerns in her research , which also offers specific reforms to mitigate these risks . Money is the key
driver behind corruption scandals that have dogged many multibillion-dollar sports industries , but Philippou says it is the human toll that motivates her work .
Corruption at the highest levels of sport impacts the people at the bottom , she notes . When money coming into a sport is “ pulled out at the top ”, it doesn ’ t flow down to where it should – into women ’ s or youth football or into the grassroots
56 ISSUE 04 / 2022