Serbian Tennis Player Banned Until 2050 for Match-Fixing

A Serbian tennis player has been handed one of the harshest anti-corruption punishments in recent tennis history. Stefan Milicevic, who once held a career-high ranking of 1,338, has been banned from the sport until October 2050 after being found guilty of match-fixing and wider corruption offences.

The International Tennis Integrity Authority’s decision puts a dramatic end to Milicevic’s professional involvement for the next 24 years. By the time the ban expires, he will be 53 years old, a detail that underlines just how severe the sanction is.

What the ITIA found

The ITIA said Milicevic was charged with fixing six matches, including five matches in which he was a participant. He was also accused of attempting to fix six additional matches between 2022 and 2024, widening the scale of the case beyond a single run of suspicious results.

Along with the fixing allegations, the authority said Milicevic tried to recruit other professional players as part of what it described as a corrupt network. The ITIA also stated that players recruited by Milicevic have been accused of fixing matches themselves, suggesting the investigation uncovered a broader chain of involvement.

Why the punishment was so severe

The length of the suspension was influenced in part by Milicevic’s failure to cooperate with investigators. According to the ITIA, he “did not engage” with the process despite seven separate attempts to contact him. That lack of response appears to have weighed heavily in the final judgment.

In addition to the ban, Milicevic was fined £53,000. During the suspension, he is barred from playing, coaching or attending any event organised or sanctioned by World Tennis, the WTA, the ATP, the Grand Slams or any national association.

A case far beyond the lower tiers

Milicevic’s career largely unfolded on the lower rungs of the professional circuit. The 29-year-old played in 22 professional tournaments on the ITF Tour between 2013 and 2023, a modest body of work that nonetheless placed him under the same integrity rules as the sport’s biggest names.

His highest ranking came in 2014, when he reached 1,338 in the world. While that figure reflects a career outside the top tiers, the ITIA’s findings suggest that corruption can spread across every level of the sport, not just the elite tours.

“This case shows that integrity risks do not disappear in lower-tier events,” one tennis observer said. “The smaller the spotlight, the easier it can be for suspicious activity to go unnoticed.”

Part of a wider crackdown

Milicevic’s case comes only months after another major sanction. In December, French player Quentin Folliot was banned for 20 years after the ITIA said he was a central figure in a network operating on behalf of a match-fixing syndicate.

Folliot, who reached a career-high ranking of 488 in 2022, denied charges related to 11 matches between 2022 and 2024. But at a hearing, 27 of the 30 charges against him were upheld, including allegations tied to 10 of the 11 matches under review.

Together, the two cases highlight a growing willingness from tennis authorities to hand down major penalties when corruption is proven. The message from the ITIA is unmistakable: the sport is prepared to use its toughest tools when the integrity of competition is compromised.

What happens next

For Milicevic, the consequences are immediate and total. The suspension removes him from the professional tennis ecosystem for nearly a quarter of a century, effectively ending any realistic path back to competition.

For tennis administrators, the case adds fresh urgency to efforts aimed at detecting suspicious patterns, protecting lower-tier events and deterring players from engaging with betting-linked corruption networks. As the sport continues its anti-corruption campaign, this verdict stands as a stark warning to anyone tempted to fix matches for profit.