SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
The Confederation of Brazilian Football (CBF) has officially submitted its demands to the government on the pending legislation of a federal fixed-odds betting regime.
As anticipated, the governing body of Brazilian football has demanded that the government increase its betting income guarantee to ‘4% of total revenues’ generated by licensed bookmakers.
It declared, “Current legislation provides for the transfer of only 1.63% of net betting results, while a new proposal is for this amount to increase to 4% of total revenue, with 80% of this percentage going to clubs and 20% to the CBF.”
A 20x increase in the current betting income was justified for “clubs to transfer football rights” and “to increase investment against match-fixing”.
Should demands be met, the CBF has pledged to develop “initial mechanisms for control and monitoring of this sector’s activities in our country,” which are “absent in current legislation but highly necessary, especially to ensure the integrity of our competitions in the ongoing fight against match-fixing.”
On 28 March, the CBF held transparent discussions with Serie A and B football clubs alongside state federations to clarify its demands. These demands have been made on a provisional basis and are subject to revision.
The CBF also pledged to revisit the matter once they receive feedback from the Ministry of Finance or when the anticipated Provisional Measure undergoes evaluation by the National Congress, events that have not taken place thus far.
In its statement, the CBF underlined its responsibility to represent Brazilian football on all outstanding issues related to sports betting, serving in the interest of “Brazil’s 800 registered clubs.”
The CBF instructed the Ministry of Finance to disregard separate opinions on betting submitted by other stakeholders, citing unproductive positions on the subject. They find it more convenient and beneficial to request, as of today, the cancellation of any scheduled meeting with the Ministry.
“We are available to discuss fixed-odds betting with the Minister of Finance at any time, with the goal of defending and preserving the interests of Brazilian football.”
As it stands, President Lula da Silva and Finance Minister Fernando Haddad have co-signed a draft proposal for a 15% gross gaming revenue tax on sports betting activities based on a ‘UK model‘ – currently under review by the Attorney General’s Office.
