In the last 24 hours, the Blaze brand returned to the news due to a decision by the court to suspend the site across the country. However, there are those who are wondering what is the Blaze case is and how the company closed partnerships with Neymar and Santos.
The president of Santos, Reinaldo Rueda, explained how the negotiation between the bookmaker and the beach club took place in a statement to the Sports Pyramids CPI, on August 22.
Rueda declared that the conversation with the current master sponsor of Santos started with Neymar Pai. The businessman contacted the manager and stressed that he could intermediate an agreement with Blaze, a company that is also a partner of the player Neymar.
“The initial contact made with Santos, made with me, was with Neymar Sr. He has a friendly relationship with the club. He called me saying: “Look, you are in need of sponsorship. I have a sponsorship here that is sponsoring my son, in this case Neymar Jr., would you be interested in talking to them?”, he told the deputies.
The parties closed the contract after some negotiations. The bond was sealed for two seasons for around R$ 45 million. According to Itatiaia, 25 million reais were paid in cash, the remainder divided into monthly installments of R$ 869 thousand.
According to the president of Peixe, payments are happening regularly. However, Rueda also informed that NN Consultoria Esportiva Empresarial LTDA, a company owned by Neymar’s parents, received a commission of BRL 4.5 million in the business.
Questioned about alleged irregularities involving the bookmaker, Rueda said he was unaware of any problem and that he would take the issue of the CPI to the company.
But, what is the Blaze case?
The explanation of what the Blaze case is is not restricted to the action taken by the Brazilian justice system this Monday. Remembering that the National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel) complied, a request from the Justice of São Paulo to take down the bookmaker’s website throughout Brazil.
The decision is based on documentation signed by Anatel’s Inspection Superintendent, Marcelo Alves da Silva, which determines that the Blaze site must be blocked immediately.
However, Blaze has received reports from thousands of people in recent months. The situation was heightened after the publication of a video entitled “BLAZE – Take from the poor and give to influencers” by youtuber Daniel Penin in June, in which he exposed his investigations into the company and the mystery surrounding the owner of Blaze.
The video spread through the networks and motivated several users to make complaints against the betting site. Until now, Blaze had partnerships with great personalities in Brazil and in the world, such as Neymar, Felipe Neto, Cocielo and several others.
Felipe Neto himself, one of the biggest youtubers in Brazil, was mentioned in the controversy and positioned himself in favor of regulating the sports betting sector. “The only thing I ask is: Brazil, regulate bookmakers and online casinos. Regulate advertisements, create rules, put order in this mess and collect money for the State”, he said at the time.
“That alone will put an end to this story, that alone will bring companies to Brazil and take them out of tax havens (as they will be required by law)”, added Felipe Neto. In response to the controversy, Blaze formally took a stand with the release of a detailed official note.
“Blaze.com, its partners and partners have been the subject of numerous speculations and allegations in recent social media posts. Blaze.com recognizes that these allegations may result from a lack of knowledge about the way in which Blaze.com conducts its operations. We want to address some issues that have arisen and look forward to providing the necessary transparency to the public to show that Blaze.com is an honest and legitimate operator.”
Denunciations and the CPI of the Financial Pyramids
Also according to Itatiaia, a group of residents in Belo Horizonte claim a loss of BRL 6 million after being convinced by an influencer to “invest” in Blaze. One of the alleged victims claimed to have invested in order to obtain funds to pay for her son’s treatment.
Therefore, what is the Blaze case is also being investigated by the CPI on Financial Pyramids (or CPI on Cryptoassets) in the Chamber of Deputies. The parliamentarians even invited the presidents of Santos and Atlético Goianiense, teams sponsored by Blaze, to testify.
It should be noted that the CPI investigates financial pyramid schemes using cryptocurrencies. According to the Securities and Exchange Commission (CVM), in all, 11 companies would have carried out fraud using digital currency, such as the disclosure of false information and the promise of high or guaranteed profitability to attract victims and sustain the pyramid scheme.
The commission in the Chamber was started in June and has four months to complete its work. The President of the House, Arthur Lira, recently declared that he does not intend to extend the work of any of the ongoing CPIs.
