Brazilian Senator Calls for Ban on Sports Betting, Citing Negative Impact on Football
Brazilian Senator Eduardo Girão has voiced strong criticism against the influence of sports betting companies (“bets”) on the country’s football industry, advocating for the revocation of existing betting laws.
During a Senate plenary session, Girão urged for a ban on these betting platforms, expressing concerns about their growing impact on Brazilian football.
Girão attributes the rise in addiction and family debt to the regulation of online betting in Brazil, which took effect on January 1st.
Amidst rumors of an impending vote on casino legalization, Girão has called for a complete prohibition of the betting sector, even drafting a bill in late 2024 aimed at reversing the current betting laws.
This bill is currently awaiting the appointment of a rapporteur.
“We need to stop this humanitarian tragedy that is sports betting,” Girão stated. “A few magnates win, and millions lose. For me, it has to end. I have a bill to end this, to ban sports betting again.”
He added, “The damage has already been done, the signs are there. And there are still people with zero responsibility towards the Brazilian population, with zero social commitment, who are thinking of putting casinos and bingo halls up for a vote in this House in the coming weeks.”
Girão has been a long-standing opponent of sports betting in Brazil, although he was unsuccessful in his bid to become President of the Senate, losing to Davi Alcolumbre, a supporter of the betting industry.
Influence of Betting on Brazilian Football
In addition to his bill to prohibit sports betting, Girão is also the author of PL 3.405/2023, which would ban the use of celebrities in advertising for betting companies at sporting events.
This bill, along with PL 2.985/2023, which would restrict the times during which betting advertisements can be broadcast, is scheduled for consideration.
If the bills are approved by the Sports Committee, they will be forwarded to the Communication and Digital Law Committee for analysis, which will determine whether these projects can become law.
Girão argues that the football industry’s dependence on betting sponsorships is detrimental to the sport. He has called for the establishment of a Parliamentary Inquiry Commission (CPI) to investigate irregularities within the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF).
Senator Soraya Thronicke, head of the CPI on sports betting, previously stated that the group was “having enormous difficulty – enormous – in investigating large betting companies that sponsor games in Brazil; the CBF, for example.”
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