According to the GDA, the discussion of the topic aims to create the necessary movement to guide legal and technical aspects, as well as others that can enable a quick and effective structuring of the municipal lottery. The idea takes into account the decision of the Supreme Court (STF), which, in 2020, gave the States and Municipalities the right to dispute with the Union the lottery exploitation, ending the monopoly provided for in Decree-Law 204/1967.
The Consortium ratified its intention to collaborate with the Municipality of Aracaju through legal practices and technologies applied in the world market, with the intention of finding the best methods of implementing the lottery, considered by the group as an opportunity to combat the current difficulties experienced in the country. For the GDA, the Brazilian Association of State Lotteries (ABLE) is responsible for studies regarding the best laws and guidelines for contracting and operation with States and Municipalities.
The collection of Caixa Econômica Federal (CEF) was put in evidence, for registering a record of collection with betting on lotteries, reaching the amount of R$ 17.1 billion (US$3.06 bln) in 2020, the best result in history, even with the pandemic, the which means an increase of 2.35% compared to 2019.
Data from Brazil’s Legal Gaming Institute (IJL) was also used to assess possible revenue after the creation and regularization of the lottery, assuming that the products will migrate bets from CEF, clandestine gambling and also from Capitalization and Awarded Philanthropy Titles. From the CEF collection in 2020, it is estimated that the clandestine market in Sergipe (slots, bingo and jogo do bicho) has achieved gross sales of R$ 8 to 9 billion (US 1.43 – US$ 1.62 bln) in recent years.
If the Lottery of Aracaju is created, the GDA stipulates that the collection potential for the first year of operation of the lottery is around R$ 5 million (US$ 895k), based on data from the population of the capital and the attractiveness of the games. For the second year, with the maturing of the market and the introduction of new products and modalities, such as Sports Betting and Mega Sena de Aracaju, the group is projecting R$ 18 million (US$ 3.25m).
The Consortium's strategy aims to operate in a concentrated manner in the capital, Aracaju, as it understands that it is not advantageous to carry out its activities by the State and to have a decentralized operation with a capillarity of service that does not justify the investments and inherent costs. The company also highlighted that the initiative can generate benefits to society, such as greater digital and social banking inclusion, in addition to the weakening of organized crime, under the argument that the municipal lottery can reduce one of the main financial sources of criminal groups that profit of all activities not regulated by the State.
The Consortium uses as a reference for the implementation of LOTEJU the approval and loyalty rates of the Rio de Janeiro population with the Lottery of the State of Rio de Janeiro (Loterj), in addition to political and social dividends that can be created to encourage community activities, educational programs and sports through transfers provided for and designated by law.
The group called for a quick vote on the proposal, believing that an active lottery is capable of, in a short space of time, promoting the generation of income and direct and indirect jobs, greater currency circulation, the promotion of leisure, the promotion of entities, departments and government programs, the social integration of neighborhoods and municipalities and the delivery of advertised prizes, among a variety of other advantages.
New lotteries
With the STF's decision to allow States and Municipalities to compete for the operation of lotteries, as long as the Union's competence to regulate the modalities explored is respected, the proposal to create LOTEJU follows the same path as other movements aimed at entering this market. One of them comes from the Government of Sergipe itself, which recently obtained authorization to create its lottery service.
Ordinary Bill No. 218/2021 was approved by the Legislative Assembly of Sergipe (Alese), on September 30, authorizing the State of Sergipe to provide, directly or under concession or permission, the public lottery service, in the form of Article 175 of the Federal Constitution, amending Law No. 8. 638 of December 27, 2019. According to the Sergipe Executive, the creation of the State Lottery is intended to contribute to increasing the financing of actions aimed at inclusion and assistance social, as well as the reduction of socioeconomic vulnerability.
The approved project foresees that it will be up to the State Secretariat of Finance (Sefaz) to plan, organize and supervise the public service of the State Lottery. It is worth remembering that in 1967, when the Decree-Law established the Union's monopoly, only the continuity of existing state lotteries was allowed, and the creation of new lottery modalities was prohibited, meaning that, by 2021, only 12 states were authorized to explore the activity.
Source: Diario de Pernambuco
