It was in 1946 that the then President of Brazil Eurico Gaspar Dutra banned gambling in Brazil because he understood that it was an imperative of universal conscience. Since then, there have been few attempts to authorize the exploitation of games of chance in Brazilian territory.
Currently, there are two main legislative projects that seek the legalization and regulation of games of chance in the country; they are Bill 442/1991 of the House of Representatives and Bill 186/2014 of the Federal Senate. Both projects have had significant movement in recent years and are likely to be converted into law. The regulation of casinos in both cases is very similar to the Portuguese model; the projects provide for casino concessions for a specified period and preceded by competition.
Bill 442/1991 stipulates a 30-year term for the concession, renewable for an equal period. There is a limit on the number of casinos per state, according to population. It is also restricted to the number of casinos that can be awarded to the same economic group, being the limit of one casino per state and five in total. Casinos should be awarded as an integrated leisure complex with artistic and cultural performances. There are several requirements regarding the complexes to be installed, such as the size of the gaming area and the minimum number of rooms in the hotel.
The Bill 186/2014 brings the concession term of 25 years, renewable for once for the same period, upon new payment of the grant amount. There is no casino limit provision by State, which may be the subject of a Regulatory Decree of the President of the Republic. However, there are rules about where casinos should be installed, for example, two-fifths of casinos should be in the North, Northeast, and Midwest of the country.
Regarding the counterpart to the public power, the bills are not exhaustive and should be complemented by the concession contracts. Only Bill 186/2014 provides for the requirement of payment of grant value for the concession. However, this requirement can be made even if Bill 442/1991 is approved, as there is authorization to do so under the Brazilian Concessions Law.
Both bills may be voted on at any time by the National Congress, depending on the political will of the senators and federal deputies.
Sports betting in Brazil was authorized by Law 13.756 / 2018 in the fixed-odds betting mode. The exploitation of sports bets must be done by authorization or concession; and may be physical or virtual. The Act expressly requires that exploitation take place in a competitive environment, and an agent's monopoly is not possible.
The Sports Betting Law depends on a regulatory decree so that the activity can be effectively exploited in Brazilian territory. In recent months, the Federal Government has submitted a draft regulation for public consultation and received several suggestions; but has not yet submitted the final version of the decree. The regulatory decree is expected to be issued in 2020.
Recently, there was in Brazil the concession of the instant lottery (Lotex), which is the "scratch card". After more than two years in the process, only one company participated in the competition for the scratch card operation throughout the national territory. The concession term is 15 years.
Other lottery games are operated in Brazil under a monopoly regime by Caixa Econômica Federal, which is a Brazilian public bank. There are also some state lotteries, but no more state lotteries are allowed.
The exploitation of bingo and local popular ‘jogo do bicho’ is also provided for in the two bills. Bill 442/1991 provides that ‘jogo do bicho’ and bingo games will be exploited by licensing, as well as the requirements for each of the activities. In turn, the 186/2014 Bill provides that the bingos will be granted, while ‘jogo do bicho’will be exploited through accreditation. That is, it is enough that the company fulfills the requirements of the law and it can exploreit.
Parallel to the bills, there are two actions in the Supreme Court of Brazil questioning the ban on the exploitation of games of chance in the country, one of which was filed in 2019. There has been acknowledgment that this is a matter of general repercussion. Should any of these actions be upheld, the STF may authorize the exploitation of gambling in the country unrestrictedly. In this case, there will be a great interest of the legislature in regulating the activity.
Therefore, the scenario of gambling in the country is very promising and may have positive changes in the coming months. This is the wish of everyone, including the Brazilian government, which has much to gain from the release of the activity in the country.
Ricardo de Paula Feijó
Master's degree in State Law at the Federal University of Paraná and specialized lawyer in administrative and regulatory law
Fonte: GMB / O Jogo em Portugal
