In Minas Gerais, Lotominas.bet is already live, but bets are restricted to individuals with a fixed address in the state. In addition to sports betting, Lotominas.bet offers bets on instant lotteries and Keno Minas, which were already existing options in the state.
In Rio de Janeiro, Loterj has accredited eight sports betting companies that, unlike Minas, will be able to offer bets throughout Brazil. The licensing fee is R$5 million (US$ 1m) for a five-year license, and the taxation rate is 5%.
Under federal regulations, the licensing fee will be R$30 million (US$ 6m) for three-year operation licenses, and the tax rate should range between 15% and 18% on the Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR), which is the revenue obtained from all games minus the prizes paid to bettors.
According to lawyers Caio de Souza Loureiro and Jun Makuta, partners at the gaming practice of the TozziniFreire law firm, who are monitoring the legalization of online gaming in the country, the states' initiative to attract sports betting companies will create "confusion" and is likely to end up in litigation. Despite the states' potential to have their own sports betting, the rules to be followed are federal.
"Only the sports betting companies that comply with federal regulations will be able to offer online games nationwide," say the lawyers.
An amendment regarding the issue of territoriality was presented this week to the government's bill by Senator Rogério Carvalho (PT/Sergipe), considering that one cannot place bets in a state where they are not physically located.
"Although states can operate lotteries within their territorial boundaries, the authority to legislate still lies with the Union, and, therefore, the licensing rules issued by the Ministry of Finance must be strictly followed," says Eduardo Diamante Teixeira, a partner at Carlezzo Advogados and an expert in sports law.
In light of this states' movement and the potential to postpone revenue of between R$3 billion (US$ 600m) and R$6 billion (US$ 1.2bn) in 2024 with the regulation of sports betting, the Ministry of Finance has already consulted the Attorney General of the Union on the matter.
The Ministry wants to enforce territoriality, meaning that only bettors residing in each state would be able to place bets on state-based sports betting companies. The Ministry also wants to ensure that only federal licenses allow the operation of sports betting companies in Brazilian territory, and they will request the Senate to make this clear in the law. When contacted for comment on the possibility of offering sports betting throughout the national territory, the government of the state of Rio de Janeiro did not respond.
The regulation of online sports betting companies has already been approved in the Chamber of Deputies and is currently under review in the Senate's Committee on Economic Affairs (CAE). On Friday (27), the Ministry of Finance published a decree with rules and obligations for these companies to operate across the entire national territory.
In a statement, Loterj explains that the released announcement pertains to accrediting online betting houses based on the best compliance practices. "The document was prepared in accordance with federal legislation, and no new rules were created," the statement says.
According to Loterj, the fixed licensing fee is R$5 million for a five-year license. "The 5% taxation falls within the state's autonomy and also follows federal regulations, which are currently being considered and discussed by the Senate," the company comments in the statement.
"The objectives of the announcement are to enable the expansion of the market of games legalized by the Union and, consequently, to increase our revenue, as 70% of Loterj's profits are used for social initiatives throughout the State of Rio de Janeiro," concludes the statement.
Source: O Globo
