Websites not complying with federal government regulations began to be taken down nationally last Friday (11). By December, the Treasury is expected to complete the definitive analysis process of the first applications received, to check which bets comply with all the determinations. Companies not on the "positive list", but still wanting to operate in the market, need to submit the necessary documentation to obtain final authorization.
The "negative list" includes sites operated by betting houses that are not on the list authorized by the Secretariat of Prizes and Bets of the Ministry of Finance.
A total of 2,040 suspect domains were identified, sent to the National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel) for access blocking throughout Brazil. The agency has already informed telecommunication companies to take down the irregular domains. That is, only sites on the Treasury's "positive list" will be allowed to operate nationally in Brazil, until December.
However, the time for the execution of the block will depend on the measures employed by the providers, according to their specificities. "Each company will take its technical measures and we will monitor to ensure that this block is carried out effectively and as quickly as possible," explained Anatel's president, Carlos Baigorri, last Thursday (10).
The most updated "positive list" includes 96 companies with 213 bets that are eligible to remain operational until the end of this year.
For the Minister of Finance, Fernando Haddad, from last Friday, the 2023 law effectively came into force as it was approved by the National Congress. "Those who are not regular, nor in the process of regularization, will be taken down," stated the minister.
Authorized companies will also be monitored, as they are in a "probationary period", or testing phase, while waiting for all documentation to be analyzed for the definitive authorization process.
Oversight includes compliance with other laws in force in Brazil, such as the Consumer Defense Code (CDC) and the Statute of the Child and Adolescent (ECA). Companies that fail to comply with Brazilian legislation run the risk of not obtaining the grant to operate, starting next year. This applies even to those currently allowed.
Next steps
By December, the Treasury should conclude the definitive analysis process of the first applications received, to verify which betting companies comply with all the determinations of the 2018 legislation (which allowed fixed quota betting, in the form of sports betting) and the 2023 legislation (which regulated the exploitation of fixed quota betting and included online games in this category), in addition to more than 10 ordinances that regulate the activity.
Betting houses deemed fit will need to pay a grant of R$ 30 million still in 2024 to start operating from January 1, 2025, when the regulated betting market in Brazil will begin. The grants will yield the government revenue of up to R$ 3.4 billion this year. However, this amount may be lower, as not all companies that applied for regularization were approved.
In addition, companies will need to permanently comply with all rules to combat fraud, money laundering, and abusive advertising, among others.
Companies not on the "positive list", but still wanting to operate in the market, need to submit the necessary documentation to obtain final authorization. The Treasury has a deadline of 150 days to respond, and companies have an additional 30 days to pay the grant, totaling 180 days.
According to the Secretary of Prizes and Bets, Regis Dudena, there will be ongoing monitoring by the Treasury to ensure that irregular sites do not operate in Brazil again. "It is a very important first step that will be deepened and will be of continuous action both from the SPA and other government agencies to protect, above all, the bettors and the popular economy," he said.
In the coming months, the Lula government will also define the possibility of barring bets from beneficiaries of the Bolsa Família Program, as well as the potential ban of certain forms of payment. Issues related to the psychological dependence of bettors will also be discussed.
A survey by the Central Bank (BC) released on September 24 shows that at least five million beneficiaries of the Bolsa Família spent around R$ 3 billion on sports betting sites through Pix.
Since the beginning of October, the use of credit cards as a payment method in betting and online games has been prohibited. The measure aims to curb the over-indebtedness of the population.
And advertising?
Companies not on the Ministry of Finance's "positive list" are even prohibited from advertising, which includes, for example, the sponsorship of football clubs.
"The positive list will be the benchmark for everything that is regular in Brazil, both for the offer of bets and for advertising. We already see some movements of platforms, social networks, and associations of TV and radio broadcasting to ensure that advertisements are restricted to regular companies," emphasized Dudena.
Television stations, big techs (like X, Instagram, and Facebook) and news portals, newspapers, and magazines are no longer advertising irregular sites in Brazil.
Source: Metrópoles
