"We are about to complete three months of a regulated market. We have a new law, interpretations to be made, and demands arising from this reality. One of them, without a doubt, is the participation of the communication sectors in the fight against betting companies that operate illegally in the country. The projection of this industry, which operates illegally, is largely driven by advertising. Restricting this exposure will contribute to the sustainability of the sector that pays taxes and operates under the endorsement of the federal government," said Plínio Lemos, president of ANJL.
At the meeting at Abert, attendees included President Flávio Lara Resende, Director-General Cristiano Lobato Flôres, and Legislative Affairs Manager Gabriel Pena Costa.
Lara Resende emphasized that with regulation, advertising becomes an important tool for promoting responsible gaming and regulated activities. "Cooperation among various economic sectors and public authorities is essential for the joint development and improvement of effective rules and measures aimed at strengthening responsible gaming and combating illegal activity. Since regulation is recent, a maturation process is natural, and we expect the betting sector to increasingly contribute to the economy, job creation, and tax revenue," he stated.
Abratel President Márcio Novaes reinforced that the association is fully committed to supporting companies and betting operators that are regulated in Brazil. "The regularization process in the National Congress was fair, transparent, and in line with democratic standards. It is only right that we endorse this initiative, especially because these companies support sports and football, which is the country's greatest passion and has the largest audience in Brazil. We stand together, supporting all companies that are playing by the rules," he said.
He was accompanied by Record’s journalism director, Roberto Munhoz, and Abratel’s government relations coordinator, Lindemberg Portela.
Blocking of illegal websites
In the past five months alone, the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA) has requested the blocking of over 12,000 illegal betting websites. The president of ANJL pointed out that official data is not available since it is an underground sector, but the tax revenue lost from this industry amounts to billions of reais. By comparison, he recalled that authorized betting companies are expected to generate approximately R$ 20 billion (US$3.5bn) in annual tax revenue for the federal government, as well as create 60,000 new jobs over the next five years.
Source: GMB
