The main events in the sports betting sector receive the visit of distinguished ambassadors, but the Brazilian iGaming Summit/ Afiliados LATAM received nothing less than Zico, the greatest idol of all time for Flamengo and the Brazilian National Team. Ambassador of bookmaker Pixbet, the 'Galinho de Quintino' was at the event to honor his sponsor - and that of his club, Flamengo - and took the opportunity for a morning of autographs of his comic book.
Mateus Lemos, head of sponsorship at Pixbet, says that having Zico as a brand ambassador is incredible and that for the company “it represents that we are big, we are with the big ones. A great goal and at Maracanã,” said Mateus to GMB.
GMB – What are your expectations regarding the regulation of sports betting in the Brazilian market and what is the importance of bringing Zico to an event that deals with the subject?
Mateus Lemos – Regarding the issue of regulations, we live in a very favorable scenario for sports betting, but at the same time we are uncertain about our political environment. There are optimistic people, but there is a bench [in Congress] that does not have the power to regulate. We know that it is an individual right of those who like and want to bet, however, we still have some obstacles and we don't know in essence what will happen tomorrow.
About Zico, he is a star, an illustrious presence, a wonderful person with a good heart. He participated in a wonderful chat to talk about everyday life, how important it is to be a brand influencer. His presence is very strategic, as everyone knows him, which is a magnet for attracting new business. Having him here signing autographs is something that for Pixbet represents that we are big and we are with the big ones. A great goal and at Maracanã.
Pixbet, among other football clubs, is a sponsor of Flamengo, nothing more than the team with the biggest crowd of fans in Brazil. That alone already represents a great highlight in the betting market?
Certainly. Flamengo is the red-black nation, the biggest crowd in Brazil, if not the world in terms of very loyal fans. Today we have many European teams, in which there is talk of cheering for a team here and another there, but Flamengo, in terms of the single, faithful crowd, is the biggest. We associate ourselves with Zico, who is the greatest idol in Flamengo's history and one of the greatest idols of the Brazilian National Team. So, we try to do that. We are the biggest and we like to work with the biggest.
And how are other football clubs supported by Pixbet doing?
The other clubs are also doing very well, thank God. We have sponsorship in Santos, Avaí, Ituano, Juventude, Campinense, Treze da Paraíba, Botafogo and several other clubs. Within this, we have the most regionalized strategies. With Santos, which is a massive team, we reached Brazil. But, for example, for the teams we sponsor in Paraíba, we do more regionalized media in order to reach that more local audience. Now, when we talk about Brazil, we have to talk to the masses and work with an influencer who talks to them so that those millions of people who follow are connected with Pixbet. Pixbet must always be connected with its customers.
Working with sports betting is not only about having the best ODD, it also needs to have reliability and brand exposure. Is this happening to you?
It happens. In addition to brand exposure, all you have to do is see our motto: 'We are the bookmaker with the fastest cashout in the world'. So, if you want to take a test now and put in R$10, you will drop in less than a second; if you want to redeem those same R$10, in less than a second you will also be available in your account. We work with reliability, agility and we want to give security to those who are betting. It's no use saying that it's the number 1 bookmaker and not giving security to those who are betting. Whoever handles the bet, handles the client's money, and when he bets he wants to feel secure about where he is putting the money and his data. And that we always preserve.
By the way, sports data is one of the backbones of the sports betting industry. How are you dealing with the issue of acquisition and delivery to bettors of an odd that really reflects the reliability and true data of a match, a championship?
In fact, the odds are standardized within a platform. So, for example, Pixbet has a platform, has another competitor with the same platform; with this, the odds end up being global. If you take neighboring platforms, which perform the same job, you may notice that the odds are very similar, they are not discordant. Also because this generates equality between competitors and for the gambler to understand that in fact we do serious work that does not escape reality. We want to deliver what really needs to be delivered.
And how has this job been to show the bettor that he can really trust Pixbet?
This is a process we call ant work. There is a saying that goes: “Good is allopathic and evil is homeopathic”. Evil ends, disappears quickly. The good is not, as in a job and in reliability, it's a little ant's work. You take a step, the customer understands; gives another one and explains what happens; if he has a doubt, we answer; if he didn't understand, we'll repeat it again. So, it's not something that happens overnight. Usually when you talk about trust, it's something you conquer. And we win our customer by showing the truth. That's how we work. Work with the truth and it will always prevail.
How has Pixbet been working with affiliates?
In fact, working with affiliates is something we've been doing little by little. We have been working safely, consciously, but everything has been going well. I don't have more details to talk about, but it's a safe job because we value safety with the final audience.
There is a lot of talk about the regulation of sports betting, perhaps even for the World Cup. Do you believe that? What is Pixbet's expectation regarding the regulation?
I think there are two scenarios. The first is this optimist of regulation until the World Cup and the freedom for bookmakers to operate more smoothly. And that pessimist with the political scenario that we never know what will happen. We will arrive at a moment of election without knowing if things will go forward or not. But I seek to work in an intermediate scenario. I don't believe that until the Cup we will be regulated. However, I understand that it is a necessity for us and, who knows, by next year this will be regulated and we will in fact have a job with freedom in the way we would like to express it. Also because betting is not a social good, it is individual. If you bet, you're doing it because you want to get in and have fun.
Source: Exclusive GMB
