Sportradar Faces Allegations of Enabling Illegal Gambling in Prohibited Markets

Allegations against NASDAQ-listed Sportradar have intensified as the SBC Summit opens in Lisbon. Short seller reports from April this year accuse the sports data and technology company of commercial ties to hundreds of illegal operators in Iran, Russia-occupied Crimea and southeast Asian black markets. The claims, detailed in a special investigation by iGaming Future, directly challenge the firm’s longstanding emphasis on integrity and clean gambling.

Sportradar, founded in Norway in 2001 by Carsten Koerl and now headquartered in St. Gallen, Switzerland, holds exclusive data partnerships with the ATP Tours, Bundesliga, MLB, NBA, UEFA, US Soccer and PFL. It has served as FIFA’s official integrity partner since 2017, providing services for all competitions including the 2026 World Cup. The company, which employs around 4,000 people across 20 countries, reported revenue of US$1.5 billion, profit of US$110 million last year.

Scale of Alleged Illegal Exposure

Muddy Waters Research and Callisto Research, citing former employees and undercover interactions at ICE 2026, allege these relationships are deliberate. One confidential source told iGaming Future the deals were responsible for around one-third of revenue. Muddy Waters estimates illegal operators deliver approximately 20–40 percent of total revenues and identified nearly 50 companies as current or recent clients operating illegally. These include organized crime-linked 1xBet and FonBet in Russia, and southeast Asian operators 8xBet, OKVIP, SBOBet and the Yabo Group, the latter linked to Cambodian call centers using trafficked workers.

Callisto Research examined hundreds of platforms and found evidence that over 270 individual platforms — more than a third of the platforms Sportradar claims to serve — use its products or services while operating in regulated or prohibited markets. Every former employee interviewed acknowledged exposure to so-called “gray” or black markets. The reports state these relationships are incompatible with regulatory requirements in key markets and have been shared with multiple regulators in North America and Europe. Three US gambling regulators have already commenced reviews.

Sportradar’s Defence and the Regulatory Test

Carsten Koerl has repeatedly asserted “Integrity is key, at the heart of what we do.” Sportradar responded that its Audit Committee commissioned a third-party independent review which confirmed a rigorous compliance framework. The review concluded the allegations are unfounded and present a deliberately misleading narrative. The company stressed that the licensing of customers is determined by regulatory bodies in the jurisdictions where those clients operate, not by Sportradar.

The firm is also defending antitrust lawsuits filed by Altenar in the US and UK in March and April this year, alleging it weaponised exclusive data deals. In August 2026 Sportradar sought to move the US claims into private arbitration in Zurich, a request Altenar opposed. Additional disputes with Panda Interactive and previously Genius Sports are noted.

These developments place Sportradar’s integrity posture under direct regulatory examination. The outcome of the reviews will clarify whether its compliance claims suffice to protect its licenses and partnerships in Europe and North America.

Reporting: iGaming Future

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