On first glance, Belgium's enlistment of Anderlecht, Club Brugge and Standard Liege in the fight against money laundering, tax fraud, corruption and other financial crimes may seem unusual. But since July 2021, the "Big Three" and 25 other soccer clubs in Belgium have had to vet advertisers, sponsors, player agents, investors, shareholders and partners for anti-money laundering purposes, identify their sources of funds and flag suspicious payments, making the country the EU's only member in compliance with a bloc-wide proposal that would take effect in 2029. "It may seem crazy, but until now, no AML rules have applied to soccer,"...
German state officials are considering the merits of subjecting professional sports to anti-money laundering rules, but unlike their counterparts in Belgium, have thus far refrained from singling out soccer for more stringent oversight.
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