The IRB signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the IOC and implementation of the system has already taken place during some of the final HSBC Sevens World Series events of this season, at which all matches were declared clear and incident free.

The move comes as rugby sevens prepares to make its Olympic Games debut at Rio 2016 and follows on from the launch last year of the IRB's online educational outreach programme,"Keep Rugby Onside", and is in line with the federation's anti-corruption regulations.

"Match-fixing and corruption is one of the biggest threats to all sports and while there is no history of prevalence in rugby, it is important that we continue to drive forward measures that educate and safeguard the rugby community from such threats," said IRB chairman Bernard Lapasset.

"As custodians of the game, it is the responsibility of the IRB and its member unions to protect and promote the integrity of our sport through the delivery of robust regulations, effective monitoring and strong education."

IOC Sports Director Kit McConnell praised the IRB for becoming the first summer international federation to sign up to the IBIS, pointing out that it not only covers Olympic Games but also major IRB non-Olympic competitions.

"The agreement between the IOC and the IRB marks the first step in integrating all Olympic summer international federations in the run-up to the Olympic Games 2016 in Rio," added McConnell, head of the Rugby World Cup with the IRB before taking up his current role with the IOC last year.

The IBIS monitoring system has already been implemented in a number of Sevens World Series events this season, including the final round in London last month ©AFP/Getty Images



The IBIS monitoring process has been set up to help collate and distribute intelligence and research from international federations.

They will share an extensive network of data communication, monitoring betting patterns across sports and between event organisers and the major sports betting entities.

The system was implemented at Sochi 2014, with all Olympic winter international federations signing up to take part.

It follows on from the signing of a MoU between world police body Interpol and the IOC in January.

Both organisations have promised to work together to address illegal gambling and match-fixing, which former IOC President Jacques Rogge described as "now a greater scourge for world sport than doping" prior to handing over the reins to Thomas Bach in September last year.

Bach has wasted no time in confronting the issue and last December set up a $10 million (£6 million/€7 million) fund to protect athletes from "any kind of manipulation or related corruption".

In the same month, Friedrich Martens was appointed Head of Betting and Integrity Reporting at the IOC, having occuped a similar role with football world governing body FIFA, where he was manager of competition analysis at FIFA's Early Warning System, which aimed to spot patterns suggesting match-fixing throughout the international game.

Football appears to remain particularly susceptible to match-fixing and corruption, however, with a number of incidents being reported over recent months, including a report published last week by FIFA which claims to have found that at least five warm-up matches in the build-up to the 2010 World Cup were fixed.

While there have been less incidents of corruption reported in other Olympic sports, the agreement between the IRB and the IOC looks set to be the first of many in the build-up to Rio 2016.

Contact the writer of this story at [email protected]


Related Stories
May 2014: Five warm-up games before 2010 World Cup fixed, finds FIFA
January 2014: Interpol sign agreement with International Olympic Committee
December 2013: IOC hire former FIFA official Martens to tackle match fixing threat
December 2013: Alan Hubbard: Is the Olympic Games safe from the Asian match-fixing gangs?
March 2013: Education, education, education to tackle corruption in sport, insists Oswald