The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) has imposed an extremely severe penalty on Serbian tennis player Stefan Miličević. The 29-year-old was banned for a record 24 years for his involvement in a large-scale match-fixing scheme.
In addition to the harsh disqualification, which effectively ended his career, the Serbian tennis player was also fined £53,000.
The highest ranking in Milicevic's career was 1,338th in the ATP world rankings, achieved in 2014. However, the investigation against him reveals systematic violations of the Anti-Corruption Program in Tennis:
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Match-fixing: He was found guilty of fixing a total of six matches, in five of which he personally participated on the court.
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Attempted new manipulations: Between 2022 and 2024, the Serbian athlete made attempts to falsify the outcome of six more matches.
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Recruitment of colleagues: ITIA reports that Milicevic was also accused of actively attracting (or attempting to recruit) other professional tennis players to a network built by him “corrupt network“.
The drastic duration of the sanction of nearly a quarter of a century is a consequence not only of the number of violations committed, but also of Milicevic's categorical refusal to provide any assistance or cooperation to the investigative authorities during the process.