Senator Jorge Kajuru (PSB-GO) wants to increase the penalty for football players and referees involved in cases of match-fixing. According to Uol, he will report on the proposed regulation of sports betting in the House.
The text is being processed by two Senate committees. Kajuru has not yet been formalized, however, there is already an agreement for it to be taken to the rapporteur.
Severe punishments for match manipulation
The senator intends to suggest extending the suspension to eight years or an immediate ban, preventing the athlete from transferring to a team abroad.
Currently, the maximum punishment for a player convicted of match-fixing is a two-year suspension. In case of a repeat offense, he will be banned from the sport.
Furthermore, Kajuru stated that he supports betting houses to continue advertising and sponsoring sports clubs, despite some senators being against it.
“Before, the shirts were sponsored by banks and beer, but that’s gone. You can bankrupt clubs if they lose this sponsorship,” said the senator.
Regulation draft
The bill approved by the Chamber of Deputies includes a tax of 18% for companies in the online betting sector, as indicated by the Federal Government.
The senator is considering increasing it to 20%. However, experts note that high taxation could make the business unviable, scare away players interested in operating legally in Brazil and stimulate the irregular market.
Furthermore, the license to operate in the country was established at R$30 million. This value would correspond to five years, but was reduced to three years in the Chamber – a point highly criticized by the market.
According to Uol, Kajuru intends to return to the initial five years, however, with amounts proportional to the size of the bookmaker: R$30 million, R$20 million or R$10 million.
The tendency is for the project to be voted on in the Senate plenary at the beginning of November. If senators modify the text, the project returns to the Chamber of Deputies.
