Towards a unified framework for anti-bribery in sport governance

There is limited literature focusing on bribery and corruption in private or quasi private sector companies and associations in general, and on sport governing bodies in particular. This paucity of knowledge in the theoretical sphere impedes critical analysis on bribery in practice, and does not allow for application of anti-bribery and corruption (“ABC”) measures grounded in research. The purpose of this paper is to inform anti-bribery and corruption research and practice by producing an original framework to facilitate critical analysis of bribery and development of ABC policies. This paper analyses and amalgamates relevant interdisciplinary literature, from areas of corporate governance, economics, politics, sociology, sports science, law, and criminology, to produce a unified theoretical anti-bribery framework made up of three elements: clarifying concepts, assessing risk factors, and assessing governance. The framework can be applied to critical assessment of bribery and/or sport governance ABC initiatives by researchers, forensic accountants, internal auditors, and compliance and governance officials both within and outside the sport sector.