CBF seeks 4% betting fee for Brazilian football rights

CBF, the Football Confederation of Brazil, has demanded that the government guarantee a larger % share of revenues generated from a federally sanctioned sports betting regime. 

The CBF has issued its formal proposal that a ‘betting regime guarantee 4% share of gross revenues to be distributed across its football leagues’.

As such, the governing body of pro-football in Brazil seeks to change its previous funding arrangement, which stood at 1.63% of net revenues agreed under Law 13,756/18, approved in 2018.

The move is likely to clash with the plans of the Ministry of Finance, which is currently tasked with redrafting Brazil’s sports betting regime for another attempt at a federal sign-off.

The CBF submitted a request to the Ministry of Finance through the Secretariat of Economic Reforms. Secretary-General of the CBF, Alcino Rocha, maintains the association’s demand that bookmakers be taxed for the use of Brazilian football image, media and athlete rights.  

Further politicking saw CBF leadership demand a one-on-one meeting with President Lula Da Silva and Finance Minister Fernando Haddad to resolve outstanding issues on the launch of a sports betting regime.

Minister Haddad had pledged to present a definitive tax framework for sports betting to Da Silva, who is than expected to sign to restart the regime’s regulatory process upon his return from a postponed trip to China in late March.

Under the current law, operators would receive 95% of the remaining net profits after deductions for prize payments, social security fees, and income tax on prizes.

Despite having met with football clubs, there is no consensus between the CBF and the clubs regarding the distribution of revenues and participation in negotiations.

The CBF seeks to keep 20% of the revenue from bets, while the remaining 80% would be divided among the clubs. However, clubs from Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo have expressed concern about the new rules surrounding sports betting in Brazil.

In a joint statement, clubs including Flamengo, Fluminense, Botafogo, Santos, São Paulo, Palmeiras, Corinthians, and Vasco da Gama argue that they should participate directly in legislative debates.

 Pro-football clubs have criticised the CBF for providing no platform to discuss policies and reforms related to the launch of the sports betting regime.

The clubs point to outstanding issues, such as fiscal concerns and restrictions on sports betting sponsorships with overseas-based and unlicensed companies, which could potentially affect teams in the Brazilian Serie A and Serie B.