"Congress has never been so optimistic about passing gaming law in Brazil"

GMB - You participated in the two events with people from industry and related to the regulation process in the country. Which is the feeling that prevailed during the meetings?
Witoldo Hendrich - We had two events here in Brasilia. On Tuesday evening, an informal dinner in a steakhouse in with many people from the Brazilian industry, people who want to enter the Brazilian industry, with deputies and people from the press. And what we saw there yesterday is that Congress has never been so optimistic about passing the law.

In your opinion, among the proposals presented during the event, which one can mean a good advance for the industry in the short term?
In yesterday's event, Rep. Nelson Marquezelli said he would propose a legislative decree to stop the criminal effects of the decree that instituted the criminal contraventions law in the part concerning to gaming. The idea is not to decriminalize gaming, but to withdraw the penalty of the conduct and this would already be a great advance. This does not mean the regulation of the activity, but the end of penalties for whoever engages in the activity of gaming that today is considered illegal.

Among the parliamentarians who will vote on the bill that will regulate the activity, is there a consensual sense to approve a single gaming law or is there a side that proposes a law that regulates the sector gradually?
There is a very strong front in Congress that wants to split the Law of Gaming. They have the tendency to want to approve, at this time, only the physical casinos at resorts and sports betting, whether physical or online. And the rest of the industry would be approved at a future time depending on how Brazilian society would deal with these new economic activities. On the other hand, the deputies we have heard over the two days, they were keen that there is no interest in approving only part of the law. That the interest of this parliamentary front, of the majority of the deputies, is to approve all of existing games in Brazil and in the world. They don’t like the idea of split the law. So, today we have two very divided groups that are one that wants to approve now only a casinos and sports betting; and another that wants to bet on completeness.

Was it possible to identify who is starting this idea of first legalizing casinos and sports betting in Brazil?
There is a lot of pressure from North American casino groups to approve, only sports betting and casinos installed in a resort area. But, according to what we heard here from the deputies, this is something that will not materialize.

And those who oppose the legalization of the activity within the Chamber of Deputies? Do they still have a large representation among parliamentarians?
According to what we heard here, the group that contrary to the approval of any gaming activity is today a small one. That group that was once big has already understood that the approval of gaming in Brazil is a potential generator of millions of jobs and we are talking about billions of revenue, billions of investments. So the group that is opposite is greatly reduced.