Brazil "likely" to pass gambling bill by end of Q1 2017
Proposed bill would legalise "all kinds of games" both online and offline
Brazil is likely to approve its new gambling bill by the end of Q1 2017, according to sources in Sao Paolo.
The country is under the guidance of a stand-in president who is reputed to have a pro-gaming background and also faces the issue of a national debt of around $56bn.
“This is going to increase the pressure over the creation of new sources of income,” said Daniel Xavier, a gaming consultant in Sao Paulo and former head of games in Brazil for GVC Holdings.
“Gambling legalisation is one of the top options. It’s difficult to place any certain assumption at this moment, as the political environment is very unstable, but considering these facts, it’s likely to have a gambling bill approved by the end of the first quarter of 2017.
“I’ve been working in the online gambling business in Brazil since 2004, and I have never seen such good prospects for the future.”
At present, offline bingo, lottery and horseracing betting is legal in Brazil, with no online gambling allowed.
Stand-in President Michael Temer is said to have links with the illegal lottery game Joga de Bicho, and in his pro-gaming stance is backed by several ministers, including the minister for tourism, Eduardo Alves, who introduced the gaming bill most likely to get passed.
“The idea is to legalise all kinds of game,” Alves told reporters in Brazil last week. “Today’s games are played illegally without generating any benefit to the state.”
Alves claims the government could raise up to $5.7bn (?3.9bn) a year through the industry.
Andre Gelfi, the general manager of the Brazil arm of gaming firm Codere, told EGR that any regulation would likely include both offline and online gambling.
“I am not sure about the timeline of the executive bill, but would expect it to unfold shortly. Online and offline are together as a combo on the discussion – I don’t think one passes without the other,” said Gelfi.
“I do think the legislations is likely to evolve during this term; the subject has gained traction in both houses of the congress and some of the new ministries have already expressed their favourable opinion towards the new source of revenue,” he added.
The country’s legal gambling market is said to be worth $4bn per year, with the majority coming from the state lottery, while the black market is worth around $5.7bn, with more than half coming from Joga de Bicho.