FIFA hosted a pivotal gathering for the protection of world football in Miami, Florida as the second edition of the FIFA Global Integrity Programme (FGIP) continues its mission to safeguard the game.

The onsite practical course brought together more than 85 integrity officers from around the world. The event, delivered in collaboration with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), represented a critical step in FIFA’s broader strategy to equip Member Associations (MAs) with the state-of-the-art tools and knowledge required to combat match manipulation.

The FIFA Global Integrity Programme is a comprehensive three-year initiative designed to reflect the evolving realities of match manipulation in sport. It aims to foster a global network of practitioners, providing them with "best-in-class" expertise from a faculty of football law specialists, UNODC officials, and anti-match manipulation experts.

The programme is specifically designed for Integrity Officers or officials representing FIFA MAs in integrity matters. These participants are ideally positioned to leverage the tools, training, and resources provided by FGIP at a domestic level to combat match manipulation and enhance the integrity of football at all levels.

Emilio Garcia Silvero, FIFA’s Chief Legal and Compliance Officer, stressed the importance of this pillar of education.

“Match manipulation is one of our main concerns. We have a long(-term) strategy dealing with match manipulation, but even in 2026, it’s a real problem – at worldwide level, at regional level, but also at national level,” he said. “And this is why we’re here: to share knowledge, information and tools with our integrity officers.”

Launched in March 2025, the programme is tailored to three levels of expertise – Standard, Intermediate, and Advanced – to accommodate the varying stages of development among MAs. The Miami session serves as the onsite practical component for the Standard level, following a series of online lessons that provide foundational theoretical insights.

The standard level focuses on the creation of an integrity strategy, the sport legal and international framework applied to match manipulation, education and preventive measures, detection and use of whistleblowers and sanctioning.

“Education is a pillar in the fight against match manipulation. The possibility to interact with more than 85 integrity officers coming from all across the world is vital for us,” added Mr Garcia Silvero. “By equipping them with tools and education, the view of experts in match manipulation, we will be more agile in dealing with domestic match manipulation issues.”

Ronan O’Laoire, who leads the UN’s work on tackling corruption and economic crime in sport, highlighted the essential nature of the programme’s multi-stakeholder approach.

"Working with FIFA, working with the UN together, it facilitates an umbrella that allows us to work with national criminal justice authorities, national sports authorities – including, of course FIFA and Member Associations – and to get them in the same room to understand that they can work together to tackle some of the threats that sports face, including match manipulation,” he said.

The Miami meeting underscored that the fight against match manipulation is a collaborative effort. By equipping officials with specialised training, FIFA and the UNODC are ensuring that the entire sports ecosystem remains a safe and secure environment for athletes, fans, and investors alike.

As the programme moves forward, subsequent onsite courses are scheduled for Paris, France and Zurich, Switzerland continuing this vital work.