The Rio de Janeiro State Lottery (Loterj) filed a new appeal, requesting the withdrawal of the injunction issued by Minister André Mendonça, of the Federal Supreme Court (STF), which prohibited the national operation of companies accredited by the state authority.
The new request was sent this Tuesday (7), one day after the rejection of the first appeal. The measure impacts 25 companies, including sponsors of traditional Brazilian football clubs.
Esportes da Sorte, a partner of Corinthians, Ceará, Bahia and Grêmio, is one of the groups affected. In a note, the company stated that “it is able to operate in accordance with the Authorization and Accreditation Term nº 003/2023 of LOTERJ”.
In parallel, the company applied for license 030/2024 from SPA/MF, after complying with all the legal and regulatory rite established by legislation and its respective ordinances, and awaits its approval, certain that all regulatory steps have been strictly complied with.
In view of these facts, Grupo Esportes da Sorte reaffirms its commitment to regulating the sector and responsible gambling, aiming to protect the interests of civil society, generating jobs, income and contributing to the economic, social and cultural development of the country”.
Pixbet, Flamengo’s master sponsor, was in the same situation, but received a provisional license from the Prizes and Betting Secretariat last Tuesday (7). Thus, the bookmaker is authorized to continue operating in the national territory for a period of 60 days, aiming to resolve the last pending issues.
Loterj’s positioning
According to Loterj, the notice questioned by the Attorney General’s Office (AGU) exceeded legal standards when it was published and, subsequently, rectified.
The state authority claims that the article that restricted the operation of betting companies to Rio de Janeiro was only inserted in Law 14,790/2023 and was not created by Provisional Measure 1,182/2023.
Therefore, the lottery understands that it would be “chronologically and logically impossible” to point out that the accreditation notice was against the law. This is because the rectification was made six months before the law came into force, at the end of 2023. In this way, Loterj maintains that it did not violate any rules.
In the first decision, André Mendonça stated that the legislation is “express” when it refers to the sale of state lotteries and bets only to people located or resident in the respective territories.
According to the minister, the rectification of the notice took place one day after the publication of MP 1,182/2023, when territoriality rules were already in force.
State license x National license
Loterj’s license costs R$5 million and is valid for five years. The federal license requires payment of R$30 million for the same period, but covering the entire country.
So far, the Prizes and Betting Secretariat has issued 14 definitive licenses and 54 temporary licenses.
