Legislation
Brazil – Brazil’s President signs sports betting decree
By Phil - 21 August 2020
Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro has signed a decree finally opening the door for sports betting in the country.
Sports betting will be launched as a public lottery service called ‘fixed-odds betting’ as part of the Investment Partnerships Program (PPI) looking to bring investment from the private sector. The National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES) and the Ministry of Economy will oversee the privatisation of sports betting.
Breaking that down further, the BNDES will be charged with ‘executing and monitoring the privatisation process’ while the Ministry of Economy will responsible for ‘coordinating and monitoring the privatisation referred to in the caput [the introduction to the betting legislation], as well as for approving the studies, projects, surveys or investigations necessary for the effectiveness of the referred privatisation.’
Brazil’s love of football has seen a number of international operators trying to establish their brands in the country in the lead up to the sector’s launch with 14 of the 29 teams in Brasileirão Série A sponsored by sports betting companies. Betsul and Casa de Apostas have three sponsorship deals each, whilst NetBet and MarjoSport have two each. In July, the Galera Group signed a five-year, R$40m (US$7.4m) deal with leading club Corinthians. Betsson has bought into Brazilian race betting operator Suaposta, which was subsequently rebranded Betsson Suaposta.
There are approximately 450 sites specialised in sports betting operating in Brazil.
