IOC and ESIC Announce Historic Collaboration

The Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and in particular the IOC’s Olympic Movement Unit for the Prevention of the Manipulation of Competitions (OM Unit PMC), announced a historic letter of collaboration which will see the organisations work together and exchange information, expertise and best practices to combat corruption and other misconduct in esports.

The IOC’s OM Unit PMC, known for its commitment to safeguarding sports from corruption, will work closely with ESIC, the global industry body recognised for its standards on integrity in esports, across several key areas. The collaboration will involve the sharing of information and insights relating to esports integrity, and the development and implementation of strategies, initiatives and programmes aimed at enhancing the integrity of esports. ESIC will also function as a specialist advisory body to the IOC and OM Unit PMC, providing guidance on esports related matters.

Friedrich Martens, Head of the OM Unit PMC at the IOC, said: “With numerous IFs organising esports competitions and the IOC planning to organise relevant competitions as well, we need to ensure that we have all the information and intelligence available to make sure that these competitions are free of manipulations or related breaches. Therefore we are very happy about this letter of collaboration formalising the long-standing communication between ESIC and the OM Unit PMC, particularly as esports is a developing area. Thus, we count on the support of ESIC for safeguarding the integrity and credibility of the esports competitions of the Olympic Movement, specifically to also further understand relevant risks and develop all right measures to mitigate them.”

Stephen Hanna, Chief Executive Officer of ESIC, said: “This collaboration with the IOC and the OM Unit PMC denotes a significant milestone for the global esports industry and is a testament to the IOC’s engagement with the industry in the development of its esports strategy. We are looking forward to working with the IOC to support its ambitious esports initiatives. This collaboration further validates the critical nature of ESIC’s mission and provides the industry with further assurance that ESIC’s work is meeting the evolving challenges to competitive integrity in esports.”