José André da Rocha Neto, partner of the VaideBet bookmaker, stated in a statement to the São Paulo Civil Police that he directly negotiated the sponsorship with Corinthians. The businessman declared that he did not know Alex Cassundé, who appears in the contract as an intermediary, entitled to a commission of R$25.1 million.
The case, investigated since April last year, involves suspicions of the use of shell companies, money laundering and other irregularities. Furthermore, it led to the opening of impeachment proceedings against the club’s president, Augusto Melo.
Hotel meeting marked the agreement between VaideBet and Corinthians
According to Rocha Neto, the meeting with Corinthians representatives took place at the end of 2023, at the Tivoli Mofarrej hotel, in São Paulo. He reported that the negotiation included Augusto Melo, administrative director Marcelo Mariano and two other people.
“I asked how much the value would be, they said: “it only closes if it’s three years”. I went up to a room, analyzed it, and came down with the deal closed”, declared the businessman.
The statements contradict an official note from VaideBet released in 2023. At the time, the company stated that the initial contact with Corinthians was made by an intermediary.
Contradictions exposed in the contract
The contract between VaideBet and Corinthians went through seven versions before being finalized. The inclusion of Alex Cassundé and his company, Rede Social Media Design, only occurred in the fourth draft. Until then, there was no mention of intermediaries in the document.
During testimony, Rocha Neto denied knowing Cassundé, even after being confronted with a photo of the alleged intermediary. VaideBet’s financial director, André Murilo, corroborated this version.
The president of Corinthians, Augusto Melo, insists that the intermediation was legitimate and detailed the negotiations to reduce the commission. “We fought over the percentage, from 20% to 7%. We reached the common denominator”, declared Melo in an interview with journalist Benjamin Back.
In an official note, the club reaffirmed that intermediation was essential to closing the agreement, following common practices in Brazilian football.
In May, journalist Juca Kfouri revealed that the intermediary would be an “orange”. Cassundé’s company reportedly received R$1.4 million from Corinthians and passed on part of the amount to Neoway Soluções, linked to a resident of a simple house on the coast of São Paulo.
Neoway’s business address, on Avenida Paulista, is a coworking space where no one knew company representatives. In other words, these revelations led the Civil Police to launch an investigation and to break the contract between VaideBet and Corinthians in June 2024.
VaideBet’s anti-corruption clause ended the relationship
VaideBet used the anti-corruption clause in the contract to terminate the sponsorship early on June 7, 2024. Therefore, the case remains under investigation, involving issues of credibility in sports marketing and in the operations of bookmakers in Brazil.
In short, the sponsorship, which promised to be a milestone for Corinthians, became a controversy of major proportions. Therefore, the search for answers continues amid conflicting versions and requires further investigation. Currently, Timão is sponsored by Grupo Esportes da Sorte.
