The second season of the KLB – Kings League Brasil – is about to kick off, stirring excitement among fans. On May 19, more than 40,000 spectators filled Allianz Parque to watch the grand final of the inaugural edition, which crowned Fúria as the first champion of this unconventional competition.
With distinctive rules, shorter game times, and strong interactive appeal, KLB became a sensation, recording the most-watched season in the league’s history, with 78.8 million live-stream views. The final was broadcast on YouTube by CazéTV, peaking at 900,000 devices connected and averaging 635,000 viewers throughout the match.
The league was designed to offer a more dynamic, entertainment-driven format, targeting Generation Z. It diverges from traditional football by mixing spectacle, gaming elements, and the direct involvement of influencers and renowned former players, turning into a phenomenon of audience engagement across social media.
The Kings League, a 7-a-side football competition, was created in 2022 by former Spanish footballer Gerard Piqué in partnership with streamer Ibai Llanos. Its goal was to transform football into an entertainment product with strong social media appeal, especially for younger audiences. The competition blends football with elements inspired by video games and reality shows, including “special power cards,” the “president’s penalty,” sponsor activations, among others.
Following the success of the Spanish edition, the Kings League arrived in Brazil this year under the presidency of former world champion Kaká, with celebrities and professional players also acting as club presidents, including Neymar Jr., Ludmilla, Whinderson Nunes, Gaules, Luva de Pedreiro, Jon Vlogs, Nobru, and others.
Matches last 40 minutes, divided into two halves of 20 minutes each. Games start with a duel between two players (one from each team), and every minute a new player joins the field until the full team of seven players is formed.
As mentioned, the competition allows teams to activate “cards” with special effects (such as double goals, penalty kicks, or temporary exclusion of an opponent), as well as the entry of guest players. There is also the “president’s penalty,” which authorizes the team president to enter the field to take a penalty kick, reinforcing the playful character of the competition.
At present, there is no affiliation with official sports federations such as the CBF (Brazilian Football Confederation) or CBF7 (Brazilian Confederation of Seven-a-Side Football), which makes the Kings League a private and unregulated tournament in the traditional sports landscape.
Brazil’s Law 14.790/23, which regulates fixed-odds betting, states that for sports events to be eligible for betting they must meet the following conditions: (i) the outcome must not be manipulated; (ii) sporting integrity must be ensured; and (iii) the competition must be authentically contested and based on sporting merit.
In this regard, the Kings League raises questions as to compliance with these requirements. External interventions by presidents, rule changes through special cards, and the lack of an autonomous federation to oversee and ensure sporting integrity place the league in a regulatory gray zone regarding its eligibility to be included among events authorized for betting.
Additionally, MESP Ordinance No. 36/2025 lists the sports and entities that may be subject to fixed-odds betting under Article 3 of Law 14.790. Article 3 of the ordinance expressly prohibits betting on non-professional sporting events or competitions that are not officially recognized by the competent authorities, particularly those involving amateur participants without ties to recognized sports organizations or which fail to meet the professionalization standards established by law.
Given this framework, and considering that Kings League Brazil does not meet the legal requirements of professionalization, institutional integrity, and federative recognition, it follows that its matches are currently not eligible for legalized sports betting in Brazil.
Furthermore, the KLB presents situations that create conflicts of interest, particularly because many club presidents and players are sponsored by betting operators and actively promote betting campaigns to their audiences. In several cases, these same individuals publicly claim to place bets on matches in which they are directly involved, whether as athletes or strategic managers of the teams.
Such conduct is expressly prohibited by Article 14, item V, letters “a” and “d” of Law 14.790/23, which bars individuals with direct or indirect influence over the outcome of a sporting event from betting or participating in promotional actions tied to that event. This prohibition is designed to prevent competitive imbalance, conflicts of interest, and manipulation of results motivated by extra-sporting financial interests.
The situation is further aggravated by the profile of athletes selected through the draft system, who, according to public information, receive monthly compensation equivalent to the minimum wage to compete in the league. Since these players represent the majority of active athletes and operate under low pay, without institutional protection or union representation, they are in a more vulnerable economic and contractual position, significantly increasing the risk of match-fixing through external pressures.
Combined with the absence of oversight by any independent sporting entity, this creates a permissive environment where integrity risks undermine not only the credibility of the competition but also the legality of potential betting activity on its matches.
In light of the current regulatory and structural framework, it is clear that Kings League Brazil, in its current form, does not meet the legal and regulatory requirements to be exploited as a fixed-odds betting product in Brazil.
The lack of recognition by a competent sports federation, the predominantly non-professional nature of its athletes, potential conflicts of interest—especially the dual roles of players and executives as commercial promoters of betting operators and active bettors—and the absence of independent oversight mechanisms render betting on the league unlawful at this time.
To change this scenario, it would be necessary for the Ministry of Sports to include the Kings League in the official list of sports and modalities authorized for betting, by amending Ordinance MESP 1259 to add the competition under Article 2, item VI.
Moreover, the structure of the competition would need to evolve: increasing the remuneration of drafted players, establishing formal mechanisms of sporting integrity, and implementing independent and continuous oversight of betting and its impact on the competition.
Only through these structural and regulatory reforms would it be possible to reconcile the innovative character of the Kings League with the principles of sporting integrity and legal certainty that underpin Brazil’s legalized betting system.
Eduardo de Jesus Junior
Regulatory Law specialist at WFaria Advogados, focusing on Betting, Compliance & Investigations. Member of the Compliance Commission of the Brazilian Bar Association (OAB/SP), with expertise in compliance, regulatory, corporate, and contractual law.
