Violations of current legislation occurred during the dispute of the traditional São Paulo Junior Football Cup.
Brazil.- The São Paulo Junior Football Cup, one of the most important tournaments in Brazilian youth football, has been involved in a scandal related to gambling advertising. According to the National Council for Advertising Self-Regulation (Conar), 32 irregular advertisements were identified during the 2025 edition of the event, contravening legislation that prohibits the promotion of betting in sports competitions played by minors.
Through exhaustive monitoring, Conar analyzed about 15,000 social media posts and 480 hours of television broadcasts corresponding to the 255 matches of the "Copinha". Most of the irregularities were linked to betting house ads on digital platforms. Additionally, during one of the match broadcasts, the presence of a betting house advertising board in a stadium was observed, which was immediately reported to the event organizers to correct the situation.
An additional concern was the appearance of children entering the playing field alongside the footballers, wearing professional club jerseys with logos of betting companies. Although this situation was not considered the responsibility of the organizers, Conar reported that it was a case to be notified and monitored.
Regarding the role of digital influencers, who were observed promoting bets linked to the Cup, Conar assured that it will notify the advertisers and those responsible for the involved social media profiles. Moreover, the case will be taken to the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA) to assess possible sanctions.
