That sports betting is capable of generating huge income is no longer a surprise to all of us, but every day we see how this market can ‘break’ its limits and boost income collection for the regions that respect and encourage this segment.
Currently, Brazil does not have a clear regulation for the sector, but a Provisional Measure is about to be defined in the coming months, which will give ‘a north’ in the current scenario of sports betting.
In Rodrigo Mattos’ column, on UOL, an article was published that portrays how big the sponsorship and advertising segment is.
Sports betting generates BRL 3 billion in sponsorships and advertising
In early 2023, betting on football matches became a topic for the federal government, which is preparing regulations for websites and operations. At the same time, the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Goiás discovered a bid and result manipulation scheme that affected the Brazilians from Serie A and B.
The two themes generate concern in clubs and in the CBF. It explains: the segment of betting sites has become relevant as a source of income for football.
It is estimated that the sector invests BRL 3 billion in sponsorships and advertising per year, including team shirts, championship plaques and media spaces (televisions, websites, YouTube videos). The number is from the federal government that collected data on the subject to regulate it.
In national and state championships, the sports betting segment has become the main investor in license plates. The CBF championships themselves, such as the Copa do Brasil, have the naming rights sold to the bookmaker.
The assessment at the top of the CBF is that the problem of manipulation of bets was generated by the federal government’s delay in regulating the sector. The law that legalized sports betting dates back to 2018, but the Jair Bolsonaro government did not regulate the sector. In the view of the CBF, this caused the current problem.
The clubs themselves went to the Ministry of Economy to talk about betting regulation for fear that the new rules would affect their revenues. The main concern is related to sponsorships. That is, there would be no chance of a sponsorship restriction, as is done in the Premier League, when most of the shirt master spaces are occupied by bookmakers.
The CBF hires the audit firm Sports Radar to monitor the bets and identify possible irregularities. Reports are sent to public investigative bodies and the STJD. But members of the Sports Justice understand that the reports are not very consistent to initiate investigations, which require the power of the police to advance in investigations.
Bookmakers point out that they are harmed by manipulation of bets, after all, they lose money. Bets on yellow cards, corners or penalties – popular on the sites – are easy targets to generate schemes, more than changing scores, wins and losses.
Exposing the extent of the game manipulation scheme creates a dilemma for football. Federal government, CBF, clubs and the entire media lose with any restriction of sponsorship to betting sites that boost the sports sector. At the same time, if game manipulation is not contained, Brazilian football is threatened by a loss of credibility with the public.
