In May of this year, Councilman Rodrigo Goulart sent a letter to the mayor and secretary of finance attesting to the importance of these industries to "make the Municipality of São Paulo attractive for the investments of companies operating online, since this market in constant evolution and growth may bring significant amounts of contribution to the treasury". In November, the City Council sent the Bill to the Municipal Chamber.
For the councilman, the segments of fantasy sport and sports betting have been growing exponentially worldwide, including in Brazil. "It's not hard to prove this, just check out the jerseys of Serie A and B teams, stadium advertising boards or TV ads and social networks. And in order for the municipality to be more inviting to companies that invest heed so high in these platforms, we need a fair and balanced regularization, with good tax incentives," Goulart said.
The project aims to reduce the ISS for activities of lotteries, bingos, sports betting, games and fantasy games. The goal of the municipality with the reduction is to attract companies to the city. A sector in rapid growth, the establishment of a reduced tax burden should attract and retain taxpayers with high mobility to the municipality, encouraging job creation and the development of the local economy.
Fabio Riva (PSDB), councilman and leader of the government in the Chamber, stressed the importance of the capital of São Paulo having a competitive ISS rate and that can attract large international companies in the sector.
"It is public and notorious a fiscal war with the issue of ISS of several companies, especially new technology companies and digital games," said the parliamentarian. "These firms, by settling here, generate jobs and income. So it's the win-win game."
The proposal of Bill 613/2022 was sent to the City Council after Mayor Ricardo Nunes received in hearing representatives of Entain, one of the largest companies in the world in the area of sports betting.
The meeting, requested by the lawyer specializing in gaming legislation Luiz Felipe Maia, had the support of Councilman Fábio Riva, and demonstrated the strong interest of international bookmakers to settle in Brazil.
For the president of the Brazilian Association of Fantasy Sports (ABFS), Rafael Marchetti Marcondes, the measure will have a positive impact on the growth of the industry in Brazil.
"The city's support in recognizing Fantasy as an electronic sport and is a modality that fosters technological development, it will certainly grow the entertainment sector in the city and help São Paulo consolidate as a technology hub," Marcondes said.
The Bill now goes to the sanction of Mayor Ricardo Nunes to effectively come into force.
Source: GMB
