Zona de Azar Brazil – Brazil: “Regulation Should Highlight Betting Advantages”
Brazil.- September 26, 2024 www.zonadeazar.com José Francisco Cimino Manssur, former special advisor to the Executive Secretariat of the Ministry of Finance responsible for regulating sports betting and online gaming in 2023, has made his debut as a columnist on the Poder 360 website, commenting on the importance of sports betting regulation.
In addition to his role at the Ministry of Finance until February of this year, Manssur participated in the special working group of the Ministry of Sports responsible for drafting the Fan Statute.
According to the article published this Wednesday (25), Brazilians have always had a strong connection to betting. It started with the creation of the “Jogo do Bicho” in 1892 in Rio de Janeiro, followed by lotteries that have always attracted millions of players. This tradition has intensified in recent years, especially with the advent of online sports betting.
The popularization of internet access and the use of smartphones have made betting more accessible than ever. With just a few clicks, it’s possible to participate in various types of games and lotteries.
In 2018, a law allowed private companies to explore sports betting in Brazil. However, this law also required the federal government to regulate this activity within two years. This regulation did not happen, creating an unregulated scenario between 2018 and 2022.
According to Manssur, this period of lack of oversight combined with the ease of online sports betting, “resulted in the current perception of a ‘wild environment’.” During this legal vacuum, the former advisor highlights the main problems that emerged:
- Abusive advertising
- Betting addiction
- Over-indebtedness
- Money laundering
- Match-fixing
Advances in Betting Regulation
However, since 2023, the scenario has begun to change. The Brazilian government has moved to regulate online sports betting. With the enactment of Law 14.790, the Ministry of Finance introduced new rules aimed at bringing order to the sector.
The National Council for Advertising Self-Regulation (Conar) implemented Annex 10. This regulation prevents betting advertisements from suggesting that they are a financial solution or targeting young audiences.
Additionally, the new legislation requires betting companies to be headquartered in Brazil. This change will allow the State to better oversee industry practices.
“Regulation forces companies and websites to be based in Brazil, which wasn’t the case before. This provides the State with mechanisms to monitor and penalize abusive practices, while also creating rules for payment systems in partnership with the Central Bank. Furthermore, it requires betting operators to provide data on bettors and betting volumes to support the creation of policies to address addiction and over-indebtedness,” Manssur wrote.
Therefore, regulation also enables operators to begin collecting taxes and social contributions. From 2018 to 2023, these companies operated without contributing to the State’s revenue, which undoubtedly caused losses for the Union.
The lack of regulation in the past created several challenges that still impact the 2024 landscape. The outlook is that by 2025, Brazil will address these issues effectively.
“For 2025, it is reasonable to believe that the problems caused by betting will be addressed by the Brazilian State much more effectively than before, and that greater emphasis can be placed on the thousands of jobs and the revenue generation that the betting segment will also bring to Brazil,” he concluded.
Edited by: @_fonta www.zonadeazar.com
