(Photo credit: Pedro Souza)
(Photo credit: Pedro Souza)
Of the 20 clubs in the Brasileirão, only three of them - Corinthians, Palmeiras and Cuiabá - are not sponsored by a betting house. But this number will drop as soon as the 'Timão' signs an agreement with Parimatch, which already invests in Botafogo. Annually, according to a survey by Estadão, betting sites invest R$497.5 (US$88.9m) million in the 17 Series A clubs of which they are partners.
The predominance is due to Esportes da Sorte, which is the first in number of sponsors in Series A, with three teams: Athletico-PR, Bahia and Grêmio. The betting platform is also present at Palmeiras, but on the women's team, as well as advertising boards, LEDs and backdrops at Allianz Parque. The company paid R$20 million (US$3.6m) to become the master sponsor of Palmeiras' women's shirt and is interested in also stamping its brand on the men's team starting next year.
“The visibility that football and major championships bring to a brand is undeniable,” says Sofia Aldin, marketing director at Grupo Esportes da Sorte. According to her, partnerships are made with teams that “completely align” with the company.
Vinícius Nogueira, CEO of BETesporte, a company that sponsors clubs such as Aparecidense, Goiás, Ypiranga-RS and Caxias, has the same thought. “Our objective goes beyond the financial return that the partnership can generate. We believe it is a way to get closer to that fan base, community and region. We always think about marketing actions that strengthen our brand and awaken a sense of identification and recognition in people,” he explains.
Some bookmakers argue that they no longer invest in Series A teams because the values are inflated, especially after Vai de Bet decided to pay R$360 million (US$64.3m) to Corinthians in the biggest contract of its kind in the history of Brazilian football. The agreement, however, ended up being broken five months later due to controversial payments made by the agreement's intermediary to a supposed “forehead” company.
“It all depends on the strategy, market appetite and the company’s moment. Just as there is an investment that makes sense for us in football, for other companies the reality may be different,” says Sofia.
There are bookmakers who are thinking about investing again in the country's main clubs when sector regulations are put into practice. This is the case of galera.bet, which sponsored the Corinthians men's and women's teams and was, until last year, the master sponsor of the Brasileirão. In the opinion of Marcos Sabiá, CEO of galera.bet, the sector has thousands of operators “eager for a share of the football spectator’s attention”.
“This inflated the values, detaching them from a more attentive and rational analysis of the return and purpose of this investment, which should be linked not only to exposure, but to branding and consolidation work of the brand and its attributes,” he analyzes.
Fewer betting houses and less money with the regulated sector
The sector was regulated after Congress approved the law at the end of last year, sanctioned on December 29th, 2023, by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, which established criteria on taxation and standards for the commercial exploitation of fixed-odd bets and defined the distribution of the revenue collected and set sanctions.
The rules were supposed to come into effect at the end of this first semester, but the deadline was postponed and the regulation should only be completed next year. To operate in the country, bookmakers will have to comply with a series of requirements determined by the Ministry of Finance, including having their headquarters in Brazil and paying a grant of up to R$30 million (US$5.35m)
There is a consensus among experts and those operating in the sector that, with the regulated market, the number of betting houses will fall, starting a process that is antagonistic to the explosion of betting in football without clear rules. After reaching the ceiling, advertising values should also plummet.
“We noticed that club shirts have increased in value in recent years, notably due to the incessant arrival of companies from the betting industry in the Brazilian market. It will also make sense if, after regulation, these values go through new accommodations,” says Anderson Nunes, business director at Casa de Apostas, the company that gives its name to two stadiums in Brazil: Arena Fonte Nova and Arena das Dunas, in Salvador and Natal, respectively.
The company will pay R$52 million (US$9.3m) over the next four years for the naming rights of Fonte Nova and R$6 million (US$1.06m) to name Arena das Dunas. “The acquisition of naming rights in multi-use arenas is part of our strategy to get closer to the public, not just football, but entertainment in general, as these facilities host a wide range of events,” says Nunes.
Amounts that bookmakers pay to Brazilian clubs:
Flamengo - Pixbet - R$105 million (US$18.75m)
Vasco - Betfair - R$70 million (US$12.45)
Fluminense - Superbet - R$52 million (US$9.3m)
São Paulo - Superbet - R$52 million (US$9.3m)
Botafogo - Parimatch - R$27.5 million (US$4.9m)
Cruzeiro - Betfair - R$25 million (US$4.45m)
Grêmio - Esportes da Sorte - R$25 million (US$4.45m)
International - EstrelaBet - R$24 million (US$4.3)
Fortaleza - Novibet - R$20 million (US$3.56m)
Bahia - Esportes da Sorte - R$19 million (US$3.38m)
Atlético-MG - Betano - R$18 million (US$3.2m)
Athletico-PR - Esportes da Sorte - R$16.5 million (US$2.94m)
Youth - Stake - R$15 million (US$2.67m)
Atlético-GO - Blaze - R$14 million (US$2.49m)
Criciúma - EstrelaBet - R$6 million (US$1.06m)
Bragantino - mrJack.bet - R$5 million (US$895k)
Vitória - Betsat - R$3.6 million (US$643k)
Source: Estadão
