Veikkaus has expressed alarm over instances of suspicious betting related to floorball in Finland, involving players and officials wagering on both national and club matches. On Tuesday, the company revealed it had identified this activity, which pertains to a Finnish national team match that took place in December and a contest from the F-Liiga top division.
The national game in question was Finland versus Norway at the 2024 Men’s World Championship last December. Veikkaus indicated that inside information regarding this match may have influenced bets placed by certain league players and officials not part of the national team.
Additionally, the company highlighted concerns regarding a playoff match in the 2024-25 F-Liiga season between Classic and SPV that occurred in the spring. They reported that individuals closely associated with the Classic team participated in betting on this game, though no issues were reported concerning SPV.
Director of Security and Risk Management Mikko Lahti explained that the suspicious betting was identified due to significantly high wager amounts compared to the norm for such games. Notably, some of these bets originated from accounts that had previously been dormant.
"Based on our investigations, it seems quite obvious that secret lineup information has been passed on and leaked from within the teams, before it has become public," Lahti stated. He further remarked, "People with close connections to insiders have even placed completely exceptional bets for themselves before the lineup information was published, even against the team to which the bettor is connected. However, we are not aware that those who played in the matches in question or acted as officials listed in the minutes have placed bets on the matches."
Moreover, Veikkaus raised alarms about broader betting activities in the F-Liiga, revealing that multiple players, officials, and individuals closely tied to teams had wagered on league matches over the past two seasons, which violates the league's regulations. One particular player was noted for wagering tens of thousands of euros last season, continuing a pattern of substantial betting from previous years.
Veikkaus also pointed out that an individual involved with a team's operations consistently placed bets throughout the last season, often before lineups were disclosed, including wagers on his own team to lose.
"This is a serious matter in which actions have been taken contrary to the rules and ethical values," Lahti remarked. "I hope that the disclosure of the matter will underline for everyone involved in top-level sports in Finland how confidential insider information linked to betting and the betting ban related to one's own league should be treated."
In response to these findings, Veikkaus has submitted relevant documentation to the Finnish Sports Ethics Centre (SUEK). Following this, the Finnish Floorball Federation (SSBL) and F-Liiga will initiate their own inquiries into the incidents.
Riku Tapio, the Executive Director of SSBL, expressed disappointment regarding the situation, indicating that penalties will likely be imposed on those involved.
"We are truly sorry," Tapio said. "This is against morality, ethics, rules, and agreements. Our task is to ensure that these cases are investigated. After that, the clear goal is to ensure that this never happens again. Together with SUEK, we will do everything we can to find the culprits. After that, we will impose penalties on them."
