Changing the way that referees are paid would be an important step towards preventing match fixing in European football

Earlier this month Europol announced some preliminary results from a major investigation into match fixing in world football. In total, 380 matches played in Europe have been identified as suspicious, with 425 individuals suspected of involvement. Tito Boeri and Battista Severgnini write on recent experiences with match fixing in Italy. Their research indicates that most referees involved in illegal gambling are motivated by career concerns, and that a flat-rate of pay would eliminate some of the incentives to cut corners in a bid to be promoted to more lucrative matches.