The permit annulled by Seop had been granted to the company To All Games Operações Lotéricas for the installation of the equipment in Tribuna A of the Gávea Racetrack.
The original licensing request — filed as a prior consultation to verify whether the activity could be offered at the site — had taken place on July 9 of this year, more than a month before Castro published, on August 19, a decree regulating video lottery throughout the state.
Shortly after, on August 21, Paes positioned himself against the legalization of the machines in the city. And on August 22, then-acting mayor Eduardo Cavaliere (Paes was abroad) excluded this modality from those that could be licensed by the municipality, removing betting totems and terminals from the legal list.
Under Castro’s proposal, video lottery transactions must be carried out via Pix to ensure traceability. For Brazilians, the account must be linked to their CPF; for foreigners, a passport number is required. Cash transactions were prohibited to avoid any possible association of VLTs with slot machines.
The equipment at the Racetrack had not yet been installed because the proposed models are still undergoing international certification to confirm they are distinct from slot machines. The O GLOBO did not receive responses from To All Games representative or from the Brazilian Jockey Club.
Prosecutor’s Office questions decree
Meanwhile, the Rio Prosecutor’s Office also stepped in. On September 1, the Deputy Attorney General sent a letter to the State Attorney General, Renan Miguel Saad, informing that the MP had opened an administrative procedure to analyze the constitutionality of decree 49.804 issued by Castro, which legalized the activity.
Among the points questioned are the criteria for granting permits to operate electronic lotteries (concession, permission, or authorization), as well as the destination of the funds collected through operating licenses. The MP noted that the Union has exclusive competence to legislate on lottery and raffle systems. And although court decisions have recognized that states may legislate on the matter, Congress has been debating the issue since 1991 and has yet to approve regulation.
The text justifies the request for information by stating that the state’s installation of such equipment “in an indiscriminate way” constitutes what the Prosecutor’s Office considers “a duty of the State to effectively protect several fundamental rights, such as health, public safety, social and economic order, especially for consumers, children, adolescents, and the elderly.”
State explains
In a statement, the state government said that the measures to regulate betting machines are supported by current legislation, that it will provide clarifications to the Prosecutor’s Office within the deadline, and that it will continue to act responsibly and transparently.
The idea is that the software running on the machines will be under the responsibility of Loterj. To operate in this market, companies must be licensed by the state agency and pay a grant of R$ 5 million (US$939,000), valid for five years, in addition to transferring 5% of the revenue collected to the state government. The expectation is that the implementation of this new betting system will begin in 2025.
Different models
The system will operate with two models. In one, the user will purchase a type of virtual ticket, part of a series issued by Loterj, and by processing it in the machine will immediately know if it is a winner.
There will also be terminals for sports betting in any modality. It will be possible to place a “little bet,” for example, on who will score the first goal in a soccer match or the number of yellow cards. This practice is already used by 'Bets' companies authorized by the Union and in other states.
In the case of VLTs, the system prevents betting on well-known games of chance, such as Fortune Tiger or virtual slot machines. However, nothing prevents the machines from looking similar to existing ones. The panels may display repeated symbols, such as numbers or identical figures, to announce a prize.
Source: O Globo
