Last Tuesday (08), businessman William Rogatto gave a statement to the Betting CPI, which is investigating the manipulation of results in Brazilian football.
In a videoconference session, Rogatto made alarming revelations about a scheme that, according to him, has been operating for more than 40 years. According to him, the scheme involved the intentional relegation of football teams.
The businessman, who declared himself a confessed defendant, claimed to have profited around R$300 million from this crime, which also extends to federations in other countries, such as Colombia.
Result manipulation scheme and its ramifications
Rogatto’s speech raised many questions. He claimed to have contributed to the relegation of 42 clubs, actively participating in manipulation operations in all Brazilian states and the Federal District.
During his testimony, Rogatto detailed the “complex system” of manipulation, emphasizing that he has evidence, including videos, photos and recordings of negotiations. This structure reveals itself as a tangle of interests that, according to him, involves powerful people, from club directors to referees, creating an environment conducive to corruption.
Therefore, the CPI intends to visit him in Portugal next week. He made himself available to share even more incisive information about the operations.
But when asked by Senator Romário (PL-RJ), CPI rapporteur, about the possibility of a plea bargain, Rogatto was skeptical. For him, this instrument could not guarantee his safety, given the elitist and violent nature of the scheme in which it is inserted. “There are people who have already made a lot of money with me,” he said, indicating that many are willing to protect their interests at any cost.
Rogatto is fully aware of the threats surrounding his life and that of others who, like him, find themselves at the heart of the scandal. “If I move, I’ll fall”, highlighting the level of organization and the risks involved in results manipulation operations.
A worrying portrait of Brazilian football
At just 34 years old, Rogatto began his career in the world of betting in 2009, driven by a trip to Las Vegas. Since then, he has been involved in a scheme that he believes goes far beyond what has been revealed so far. “If I wasn’t the biggest, I was one of the most organized in Brazil”, he claimed.
When addressing Senator Jorge Kajuru (PSB-GO), Rogatto stated: “that he really cheats and that he makes a living from it”, also highlighting the “hypocrisy of the system”. According to him, he does not consider himself a violent criminal, but rather a “too small shark” in a sea of big sharks.
He claimed that he found a loophole in the system and, from there, “got tired” of deceiving club presidents to profit from his bets.
The complexity of the results manipulation scheme
Rogatto revealed that he relegated 42 clubs and that, to make a profit, he depended on the decline of these teams. “Basically, I deceive the club president. […] That team will lose, it will benefit me in my bets.” – he declared.
In other words, he admitted that, throughout his career, greed led him to bring together a considerable number of partners and investors in his results manipulation scheme.
In his speech, the businessman also mentioned the relationship between the scheme and VAR referees, suggesting that some of the referees’ decisions could be influenced by manipulations.
When asked about the participation of renowned teams, such as Palmeiras and São Paulo, Rogatto evaded: “It’s my opinion, I don’t know if it happened or not”. However, he believes that manipulation even affects the results of decisive matches.
But the testimony did not stop there. When asked whether there was a presence of politicians in the scheme, Rogatto was assertive in stating that “there are politicians, councilors, mayors”.
For him, this entire system is based on financial interests, where everyone is “in search of money”. Thus, he highlighted the fragility of institutions and the ease with which it is possible to enter this dark world of football.
Rogatto alleged that he paid exorbitant amounts to manipulate decisions during games. “An official referee today earns around R$7,000 per game, I paid him R$50,000″, he revealed. In this way, he made a point of highlighting that the model is supported by corruption.
Report from the president of Santa Maria
During the session, the president of the Sociedade Esportiva de Santa Maria (DF), Dayana Nunes, was also heard. She reported that she started to command the team after her husband suffered a hemorrhagic stroke and met Rogatto in a period of financial fragility.
According to Dayana, the businessman presented himself as someone who could save the club, but ended up becoming responsible for the team’s relegation. “I thought he [William] was on my side, he was a very good artist.”
Rogatto did not hesitate to state that, in his career, he has already earned approximately R$300 million since the creation of his scheme. He reported that match-fixing is not limited to Brazil, but that it operates in nine countries.
This expansion, according to him, is necessary due to the “expensive life” he leads in Europe, validating his actions as a form of livelihood.
Finally, the businessman called himself the “king of relegation”, stating that his profits come from the collapse of teams that, in his view, do not care about their own situation. “If the team president isn’t worried about his team, will I be?”