VIE 29 DE MARZO DE 2024 - 04:59hs.
OAB/ES webinar

"The gaming market needs permanent legal security to invest in Brazil"

The webinar “The Law of Gaming” organized by the Higher School of Law of Espírito Santo held on Friday (25), discussed about the gaming industry and what Brazil needs for the activity to be installed with legal certainty in the country. Coordinated by Luiz Henrique Alchio, federal advisor at OAB (Brazilian Bar Association), the event was attended by Ana Luiza Ralil, from Football’s STJD, and Gildo Mazza, journalist at GMB, who said: “the gaming market needs legal security to invest.”

In his presentation, Alochio brought a little of history of the gaming sector from the initial days to the present time, going through the golden phase of casinos in Brazil and the ban on activity, as well as the end of bingos in the first decade of this century. According to him, the industry needs to be regulated so that all the benefits of the sector are made available to the society.

Ralil affirmed that today sports betting is already a reality, but several modalities are left out of this market. “Today we see 14 football teams in the Brasileirão championship being sponsored by bookmakers, and with regulated activity other clubs may also benefit, but we must not forget that judo, basketball, volleyball and many other sports also need to be inserted in that context.”

For her, the regulation of gaming would allow not only the generation of jobs and taxes, but also greater visibility of sports marketing. "Furthermore, it is a fantastic and passionate industry and it is necessary to demystify the old idea that gambling and betting attract crime," she said, stressing that "behind this 'gaming industry' there are serious people who can put Brazil on another level.”

Gildo Mazza commented that gaming is an economic activity like any other and should be seen as such, and not as a pot of gold. “The activity is inserted in the economic context and has great power to increase tourism, the generation of taxes and its collection. But to do that, the market needs permanent legal security to invest in Brazil.”

According to him, "the country needs to define and approve the Regulatory Framework for Gaming in order to attract investment for the activity, both from large multinational companies that operate this business in all jurisdictions where gambling is regulated, and from local businessmen. Bingos, casinos, machine rooms, sports betting and jogo do bicho are not competitors, but activities that complement each other and that need to be encouraged to operate in Brazil,” he said.

In his assessment, Brazil can achieve business of more than of R$170 billion (US$30.5bn), which would generate almost R$60 billion (US$10.8bn) in taxes. “But for that, the government cannot strangle the activity, thinking that any percentage of taxes is appropriate. Gaming must also be interesting for the bettor, with payouts similar to those practiced in the international market, and the tax must be small so that the activity is attractive to everyone involved.”

Gildo Mazza showed the examples of Las Vegas and Macau, the two most important gaming jurisdictions in the world. “In Las Vegas, large corporations saw the economic importance of the activity and created strict rules to drive the mafia out of business. And thanks to that, the city has become what it is today. And in Macau, even though it is a special administrative region administered by communist China, the business has reached stratospheric values despite the centralized economic model,” he said.

The next debate is scheduled for October 9 and will feature Daniela Campos Libório, federal counselor of OAB-SP and president of the Urban Law Commission of the Federal Council of OAB, who will talk about urban planning and the insertion of new economic activities. Maria Luiza Kurban Jobim, legal advisor at TJRS, will talk about the gaming sector's development and the regulatory outlook from the problematic case of bingos in Brazil. The second day closes with Raphael Coelho, lawyer and consultant, who will bring his experience on the basic concepts of gaming law in the United States.

To subscribe to the debate cycle on “The Law of Gaming” - The regulation of gaming in comparative law and in Brazil: Draft laws, challenges and perspectives”, click here .

Source: GMB