About 30 football clubs have signed a manifesto in favor of the Betting Law in Brazil. The note was read today during the public hearing promoted by the Supreme Federal Court (STF) by lawyer André Sica, partner of CSMV law firm, representing Fluminense. The teams argue that the ban on sports betting in Brazil will cause a collapse of football as it will affect the financial health of the clubs. The group also defends that the advertising of the sites should be maintained.
According to the "Joint Declaration of Brazilian Clubs", 15 of the 20 clubs in the 1st division of the Brazilian championship have betting companies as main sponsors and 19 out of 20 have some type of sponsorship.
Cruzeiro, Fluminense, Botafogo, Palmeiras, Vasco da Gama, São Paulo, Corinthians, Atlético-MG, Internacional, Grêmio, Juventude, Cuiabá, Athletico-PR, Fortaleza, Bahia, Atlético-GO, Criciúma, Red Bull Bragantino, Vitória, América-MG, Ceará, Avaí, Ponte Preta, Guarani-SP, Joinville, Vila Nova-GO, Brusque, Paysandu, Hercílio Luz, and Barra FC are the teams present in the declaration.
The manifesto states that fixed-odds betting is important for the settlement of club debts and the hiring of players. In the view of the clubs, the money from bets has allowed the increase in competitiveness of Brazilian football in the world and in Latin America.
The teams argue that the prohibition of bets will not extinguish virtual games, therefore, it is better to maintain the regulation on the path that has been drawn in Brazil.
"The clubs will lose a vital source of revenue", the note informs. The teams also point out that, without the bets, they will be alone in combating result manipulation. The note also highlights that bets have become sponsors of women's football in the country.
"I believe it was an extremely productive hearing. Football managed to do its part and show its point of view, as it understands that all regulation can be improved, but prohibition is never the way", explains André Sica, partner at CSMV Lawyers.
"Football managed to show a very strong mobilization force. Through the space granted and the powers conferred by Fluminense, we managed to get the adhesion of 30 Brazilian football clubs and issued a very strong declaration, showing, in general terms, the position of the sector", he concludes.
The representative of Cruzeiro, Antônio Carlos de Almeida Castro, was emphatic in saying that the prohibition of bets in the country "will be the end of football in Brazil".
In his assessment, without the bets, football does not survive in Brazil, since bets have become the main financiers of sports activities.
According to him, small clubs will break because Brazilian football is experiencing another moment and bets have become crucial to the teams. Kakay, as he is known, argued that the regulation in the country is good and still needs to be implemented.
Representative of Botafogo, Jonas Decorte Marmello, said that thanks to the financing of bets, Brazilian football is more competitive in the world. According to him, even with the exchange rate disparity, today there are investors for Brazilian football who can maintain and bring quality players. "If bets are prohibited or poorly regulated, we are doomed to the breakdown of the Brazilian football industry".
Source: Valor
