GENEVA: The Sport Integrity Global Alliance (SIGA) Council has unanimously renewed the mandate of Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros as its global chief executive officer (2026-2030), with de Medeiros insisting the continued mandate is about completing work that has begun to ensure integrity in sport becomes structural, measurable and irreversible.
“I am deeply honoured by the confidence unanimously placed in me, and I thank all Council members for their trust and continued commitment to our shared mission,” said de Medeiros.
“SIGA’s leadership elections are conducted through a rigorous two-stage process involving both the Council and the General Assembly. It may be unusual in international sport, but for me legitimacy means everything. Governance must be earned through trust, accountability and the confidence of our members – and I would not have it any other way.
“This renewed mandate is not about an individual. It is about completing the work we have collectively begun and ensuring that integrity in global sports becomes structural, measurable and irreversible.”
He added that standards had been established and the mechanisms were in place, and that the task now was disciplined delivery – ensuring integrity governed every decision, guided every organisation and drove every action across the global sports ecosystem.
“In the coming years, our focus will be on translating commitments into verifiable outcomes. Integrity must move from aspiration to expectation, and from voluntary alignment to institutional obligation,” he said.
“Our mission remains clear, and today it is more important than ever: to ensure that every sports organisation, in every country, can demonstrate compliance with the SIGA Universal Standards on Sport Integrity through independent verification, rating and certification.
“Only then will sports be able to earn people’s trust everywhere and fulfil its full potential.”
The election will now be submitted for formal ratification by the SIGA General Assembly during its Annual General Meeting on April 14 in Lisbon, Portugal.
One of the most experienced and influential figures in international sports governance and law, de Medeiros is a leading sports lawyer and governance expert.
He conceived and co-founded SIGA and has spearheaded the organisation since its inception, shaping it into the world’s largest independent and neutral multi-stakeholder coalition dedicated to strengthening integrity, transparency and accountability across global sport.
In parallel with his executive leadership, de Medeiros has contributed to governance and policy initiatives involving institutions such as Uefa, Fifa, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the Court of Arbitration for Sport and the World Economic Forum, reinforcing his continued commitment to strengthening governance, transparency and integrity in sport.
His key priorities for the coming mandate include:
- Consolidating SIGA’s institutional architecture and governance model across its global and continental structures;
- Strengthening financial sustainability through a diversified revenue model and the operational expansion of SIGA Sports Solutions;
- Accelerating global adoption and implementation of the SIGA Universal Standards on Sport Integrity and the SIRVS verification, rating and certification framework;
- Positioning governance, transparency and integrity as core determinants of commercial trust and investment in sport;
- Enhancing athlete protection and safeguarding through the continued development and implementation of SIGA’s standards on youth development and protection;
- Strengthening technological preparedness and integrity intelligence systems to anticipate emerging risks in global sport;
- Expanding SIGA’s global networks, including SIGAWomen, the SIGA Youth Council, the SIGA University Network and the SIGA Champions initiative; and
- Scaling SIGA’s global thought leadership through media engagement, strategic communications and high-level international forums.
Twentytwo13 is SIGA’s official media partner.
