ANJL criticizes government for betting meeting without the sector being regulated.
The National Association of Games and Lotteries (ANJL) released a statement on Wednesday (September 2nd) repudiating the Federal Government's decision to hold a meeting on Tuesday (September 1st) to discuss the impacts of online sports betting without inviting representatives from the regulated sector. The meeting was led by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and brought together entities from the areas of health, culture and economy, representatives of civil society and religious organizations.
What provoked ANJL's reaction was not only the absence of the sector, but the composition of the group that was present. Among the participants were entities and representatives who had already publicly expressed criticism of the betting market. Without any counter-argument from the regulated side, the meeting produced, according to the entity, a one-sided narrative about the sector's impacts.
Technical and institutional absence
The exclusion was not limited to companies in the sector. The Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA), an agency of the Ministry of Finance responsible for regulating and overseeing the market, also did not participate in the meeting. For ANJL, this represents a direct contradiction: the government claims to want to protect consumers, combat gambling addiction, and protect minors, but it promotes a debate without the agency that possesses the technical and institutional knowledge about the measures adopted to achieve these objectives.
The president of ANJL, Plínio Lemos Jorge, declared that the exclusion represents a serious compromise of the democratic nature of the debate and the construction of public policies. “The organization understands that any serious and responsible debate about the effects of betting platforms must necessarily include listening to the regulated agents, who have data, technical expertise, and in-depth knowledge of how the market works. Excluding this segment from the dialogue compromises the quality, impartiality, and legitimacy of the decisions that may be made,” stated Lemos.
Disputed data and ignored legal framework
ANJL added another layer of criticism: during the meeting, data and information about the impacts of betting were presented which, according to the organization, do not correspond to the official data available. For the association, conducting a discussion of such magnitude based on questionable information, and without the presence of the directly affected parties, undermines the legitimacy of any conclusions that may emerge from the meeting.
The statement notes that the sports betting market in Brazil operates under a legal framework approved by the National Congress after extensive public and institutional debate. Any revisions to this legislation should therefore follow the same path: democratic discussion with the participation of regulatory bodies, the economic agents involved, and society.
Risk of strengthening the illegal market.
Beyond procedural criticisms, ANJL warned of what it considers a concrete public policy risk. The regulated sector is the environment where obligations exist for the prevention of gambling addiction, protection against indebtedness, protection of children and adolescents, responsible advertising, and responsible gambling mechanisms. In the illegal market, these protections do not exist.
The logic presented by the organization is straightforward: restrictive measures that weaken the regulated market do not eliminate betting, but rather shift consumers and resources to clandestine operators. This shift, argues ANJL, creates conditions for the expansion of a market that the State itself should be combating, with the added risk of strengthening organized crime.
The economic dimension of the sector supports part of this argument. The regulated betting market generates hundreds of thousands of jobs, drives a chain of services and investments, and contributes to the financing of segments such as sports, culture, telecommunications, and the television and media sector, in addition to representing significant revenue for the State.
Request for a new meeting
ANJL announced that it will request a new meeting with the Federal Government to discuss, together with society and public authorities, the issues raised at the meeting on Tuesday (September 1st). The organization reaffirmed its active participation in the regulatory process from the beginning, engaging in dialogue with the government and SPA to build a regulatory framework that prioritizes the protection of society and consumers.
According to the association, the debate about betting is legitimate and necessary. What it contests is the format adopted: holding a discussion about the future of a legalized sector by exclusively listening to its critics and excluding the agents who helped build the regulation and who are responsible on a daily basis for the functioning of the regulated market.
ANJL condemns the exclusion of the betting sector from the Federal Government meeting.
The National Association of Games and Lotteries (ANJL) expresses its repudiation of the stance adopted by the Federal Government in promoting a meeting, this Tuesday (1st), to discuss the impacts of online sports betting without inviting representatives of the regulated sector. The meeting was led by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), with the participation of entities from the areas of health, culture and economy, as well as representatives of civil society and religious organizations.
The composition of the meeting makes the exclusion even more concerning. Among the participants were entities and representatives who had already publicly expressed criticism of the betting sector and its impacts. Conversely, there was no representative from the regulated market present to present data, clarify information, or explain the position of those subject to the rules created by the State itself.
In practice, therefore, the Federal Government promoted a debate about an entire sector without listening to the sector itself — and, in an environment predominantly composed of voices critical of gambling, a one-sided narrative about its impacts was presented.
According to the president of ANJL, Plínio Lemos Jorge, the absence of representatives from the sector represents a serious compromise of the democratic nature of the debate and the very construction of public policies.
“The organization understands that any serious and responsible debate about the effects of betting platforms must necessarily include listening to regulated agents, who have data, technical expertise, and in-depth knowledge of how the market works. Excluding this segment from the dialogue compromises the quality, impartiality, and legitimacy of the decisions that may be made,” says Lemos.
ANJL emphasizes that it has always based its actions on institutional dialogue with the Federal Government and, especially, with the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA). Since the beginning of the regulatory process, the entity has participated in discussions and contributed to the improvement of the rules that structured the regulated market in the country.
This process has always been based on the premise that regulation should serve, above all, the protection of society and consumers. ANJL has defended and continues to defend mechanisms for the prevention and combating of gambling addiction, protection against indebtedness, protection of children and adolescents, responsible advertising, oversight of operators, and effective mechanisms for responsible gambling.
It is precisely these obligations and safeguards that differentiate the regulated market from the illegal market.
ANJL's concern is even greater given that the defense of restrictive measures for the sector was accompanied, during the meeting, by the presentation of data and information on the impacts of betting that do not correspond to the available official data. It is unacceptable that a discussion of this magnitude be conducted based on questionable information and without those directly affected having the opportunity to present their data and arguments.
This is a sector subject to a legal framework approved by the National Congress after extensive public and institutional debate. Any improvements to the legislation should be discussed democratically, with the participation of society, regulatory bodies, and the economic agents involved, and not based on unilateral debates that pre-establish a narrative about the sector.
It is also important to remember that the regulated betting market has significant economic and social relevance. The sector generates hundreds of thousands of jobs, drives a wide range of services and investments, and contributes to the financing of different segments of the Brazilian economy, including sports, culture, telecommunications, and the television and media sector, in addition to generating significant revenue for the State.
The institutional absence is also noteworthy. The Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA), an agency of the Ministry of Finance responsible for regulating and overseeing the sector, did not participate in the meeting. This is precisely the agency that possesses technical and institutional knowledge about the functioning of the regulated market and about the measures adopted to combat illegal operators.
There is, therefore, a contradiction that cannot be ignored: the Federal Government claims to want to protect the consumer, combat gambling addiction, prevent indebtedness, and protect minors, but adopts a stance that may precisely weaken the regulated environment in which these obligations exist.
In the illegal market, these protections simply do not exist.
Therefore, weakening the regulated market does not eliminate gambling. It strengthens illegality. And, by shifting consumers and resources to clandestine operators, this stance creates conditions for the expansion of a market that the State itself should be combating, including the consequent risk of strengthening organized crime.
ANJL reiterates its commitment to transparent, technical, and constructive dialogue with public authorities. The debate on betting is legitimate and necessary. ANJL has never shied away from it—on the contrary, it has always been at the table, engaging in dialogue with the Federal Government and SPA to build more responsible and protective regulations.
What is illegitimate is holding a debate about the future of a legalized sector by listening only to those who criticize it and excluding precisely those who participated in building the regulatory framework and who have the responsibility to defend, daily, a safer, more regulated and responsible market. ANJL will request a new meeting with the Federal Government to discuss with society and the public authorities the issues raised at Tuesday's meeting.
