A 26-year-old French player has been banned for 20 years due to multiple allegations.

A $44,000 bribery sum has led to the total termination of his professional career and a 20-year prohibition from participating in any tennis events.

On December 11, 2025, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) imposed a 20-year ban and a $70,000 fine on French tennis player Quentin Florat, also demanding the return of more than $44,000 in corrupt payments.

This ruling is among the harshest penalties issued by ITIA in response to tennis corruption.

At 26 years old, Quentin Florat was a professional tennis player who reached his career-high singles ranking of world No. 488 in August 2022.Between 2022 and 2024, he was involved in corruption activities in 11 tennis matches, personally participating in eight of them.

Florat was charged with 27 violations of the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program (TACP), initially facing 30 charges. These included match-fixing, accepting money to underperform, paying other players to fix matches, providing insider information, refusing to cooperate with ITIA investigations, and destroying evidence.

Independent Anti-Corruption Hearing Officer Armani Khalifa described Florat in a written ruling as a “conduit for a broader criminal network.”He not only engaged in match-fixing himself but also actively recruited other players, attempting to embed corruption deeper into the professional tour.

Florat is the sixth player sanctioned in this investigation. Previously, five players, including Jamie Floyd-Angle, Paul Valsky, Luc Fomba, Lucas Bouchet, and Enzo Rimoli, were penalized for similar offenses.

According to the official ITIA statement, Florat’s ban will last until May 16, 2044, provided he pays all outstanding fines.

His provisional suspension starting from May 17, 2024, will be counted towards the total ban period.During the suspension, Florat is forbidden from participating in, coaching, or attending any tennis events authorized by ITIA members.

ITIA members include major tennis organizations such as the ATP, ITF, WTA, Tennis Australia, the French Tennis Federation, Wimbledon, and the United States Tennis Association.

The investigation identified Florat as a “central figure in a player network operating on behalf of a match-fixing syndicate.” The case was heard via remote hearing on October 20-21, 2025.Independent Anti-Corruption Hearing Officer Armani Khalifa presided over the hearing and upheld 27 of the 30 charges, dismissing three related to a doubles match in 2024.When determining the penalty, Khalifa considered aggravating factors, including Florat’s deliberate obstruction of the ITIA investigation.

Florat’s career prize money totals around $60,000, starkly contrasting with the millions earned by top players. This may explain the financial pressures and corruption temptations faced by lower-ranked players.

This is not an isolated case; recently, several lower-ranked players have been sanctioned for similar violations. Last month, three Chinese players were banned for match-fixing, among whomLi Wenfu received a two-year and three-month ban and a $20,000 fine, with $15,000 of the fine suspended; Zhang Jin was banned for two years and fined $15,000; Lu Pengyu was provisionally suspended pending a full investigation for alleged violations of the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program.

Tennis corruption issues are not limited to players; officials are also key targets of anti-corruption efforts. Juan Gabriel Castro from the Dominican Republic was banned for six years and fined $6,000 for allegedly manipulating score entries in three matches.

The ITIA is an independent body established by tennis stakeholders aimed at promoting, encouraging, strengthening, and preserving the integrity of professional tennis events.

Facing increasingly complex corruption networks, ITIA has adopted a more proactive investigative approach. The Florat case shows that tennis anti-corruption agencies are now capable of uncovering and combating organized corruption rings, not just individual offenders.

Florat will be eligible to return in May 2044, by which time he will be 45 years old. For a professional tennis player, this effectively signals the end of his career.

His case reveals the harsh reality faced by lower-ranked tennis players, where meager earnings coexist with significant corruption temptations.

The tennis anti-corruption agency is weaving an increasingly tight surveillance net. From France to China, from Rwanda to Russia, the International Tennis Integrity Agency is demonstrating through its actions that corruption, wherever it occurs worldwide, will face severe accountability.(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Mei)