The rule meets the request of the Rio de Janeiro State Lottery (Loterj) for compliance with "applicable and current legislation in Brazil," including tax legislation, as provided for in the notice released last year. In order for a ‘Bet’ -as operator are called in Brazil- to advertise at Maracanã under a concession contract, it will need to have formal authorization from Loterj or the Federal Government.
The Brazilian betting market, which is dominant in club and sports sponsorships, is undergoing a regulatory process, with 27 companies in the process of being accredited by the Federal Government.
The deadline for this accreditation stage ends on Tuesday (20) next week. The analysis, with approval or rejection, will last until the end of 2024. As of January 1, 2025, betting houses will only be able to operate within the provisions of Brazilian legislation.
Flamengo has been sponsored by Pixbet since the beginning of the year. It is one of five companies accredited by Loterj, in Rio. The others are Apostau, Bestbet, Rio Jogos and Marjosports. The club is in the process of creating its own brand, Flabet, from Pixbet. The company has not yet filed for federal regularization, but can operate in Rio de Janeiro with Loterj.
Fluminense, Flamengo's partner at Maracanã, has a contract with Superbet, which was the second company to file for accreditation with the Ministry of Finance.
The text added to the contract that will be signed by the Special Purpose Entity (SPE) with the Government of Rio states the following: "The Concessionaire is prohibited from advertising and/or merchandising, directly or through an intermediary company, within the Maracanã Complex, for betting houses that do not have a formal authorization from the Rio de Janeiro State Lottery – Loterj or the Federal Union, in accordance with Decree No. 48,806/23."
In practice, the veto would affect an advertising sign for an unaccredited company - currently the Maracanã Consortium has a contract with Sportsbet.io, which is not yet accredited by Loterj or in the process of regularization with the Union.
ge contacted the Maracanã Consortium, which is still studying the legal issue of the case, as well as Flamengo and Fluminense about the new provision.
In a statement, Fluminense said that "the clause mentions the need for authorization from Loterj or the Federal Government. Federal regulations (ORDINANCE SPA/MF No. 827, MAY 21, 2024) establish that the deadline for legal entities operating in Brazil to comply ends on December 31 (art. 24). It also establishes that those who requested authorization by August 20 will have their request analyzed by December 31 (art. 23). Therefore, currently, there are no irregular companies from a federal perspective. This may only happen on January 1, 2025 for those who do not have authorization."
For Loterj, the grant is R$5 million (US$ 915,000) for operations in the state of Rio de Janeiro. For the Federal Government, with the Ministry of Finance, the grant is R$30 million (US$ 5.5m). Loterj's license charges a 5% tax rate on the profits of betting houses, while for the Federal Government it is 12%.
Source: ge
