The Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC) announced Thursday it will allow betting on the Australian Football League’s 2023 Brownlow Medal, including round-by-round voting, after the AFL agreed to implement a range of tougher controls around voting and betting markets.
The revised controls around the sport’s annual player of the year award comes after an AFL umpire was charged for allegedly leaking results of round-by-round voting before last year’s Brownlow Medal count, resulting in a series of successful wagers allegedly being placed. The matter remains part of an ongoing investigation by Victoria Police.
According to details from the VGCCC, the AFL has been informed that betting will be allowed pending implementation of new safeguards, including:
- prohibiting any type of AFL betting by “all AFL persons, including umpires”
- pay-out limits of AU$250 on all Brownlow round bets
- all betting transaction data being provided to the AFL
- strengthened surveillance of AFL umpires and their associates
- spot audits of all AFL persons
“We have determined the AFL’s control improvements are adequate and determined a prohibition on the 2023 Brownlow round-by-round voting is not required at this time,” said VGCCC chair, Fran Thorn.
“We are satisfied with the immediate control improvements but will continue to monitor the implementation of additional priority measures including a real-time transaction monitoring system, the prohibition of betting providers over compliance concerns, a monthly audit of unapproved bet types and the categorising of vulnerable player groups at a higher risk of being compromised, such as young players and those at the end of their careers.”