A point in Law No. 14,790, which regulates sports betting in Brazil , has worried the sector about the possibility of prohibiting the granting of bonuses to bettors.

Article 29 of the legislation prohibits the operating agent from “granting, in any form, advance, prepayment, bonus or prior advantage, even for the mere purpose of promotion, publicity or advertising, for placing a bet”.

In the first case, this impediment would harm licensed operators, opening up an opportunity for the illegal market to attract new customers.

The section should become clearer with the issuing of ordinances by the Ministry of Finance, which is responsible for enabling the operation of betting houses in Brazil.

In a note, the department reported that the responsible technical area is evaluating the scope of the standard.

“As soon as the analysis is completed, the proposed regulatory provisions must be submitted for approval by the Office of the Attorney General of the National Treasury. Therefore, there is still no conclusive position on this specific point, which will only occur after the aforementioned measures have been adopted,” he said.

Risk of an illegal market

Udo Seckelmann, a lawyer specializing in sports and betting at the Bichara e Motta law firm, warns that the ban on bonuses is seriously damaging to the market, which uses this tool as a form of advertising in Brazil.

“This is a cause for concern because in order to retain betting customers in Brazil, you need to offer bonuses,” he says.

He highlights that the bonus is also important so that companies can resolve possible conflicts with the bettor, such as in the case of complaints of non-payment .

“It is the way the operator has to attract bettors to its website, whether for the first deposit or activations, or to attract the consumer’s attention. The bonus is an excellent marketing and customer retention tool”, he says.

The lawyer hopes that, in the ordinances that will be issued, a loophole will be provided to allow the offering of bonuses for commercial and marketing purposes.

Granting of credit

Lawyer and vice-president of the Special Commission for Lottery, Sports and Entertainment Law at the National Bar Association, Milton Jordão, sees the section in the legislation differently.

For him, the prohibition placed in the law only applies to the granting of credit for betting, being a measure to curb gambling addiction.

He argues that today, “advances” are no longer offered, as the law states; all bonuses are credited only after a first bet.

“It can be disclosed as there is a previous value from the player. Generally, the houses establish that if you play, you get a bonus. But you cannot give credit at the time of registration”, he says.

“You can see that the legislator is concerned about making it very clear that those who are going to bet do so because they want to and have the financial means. They don’t want people to be led to bet, whether by advertising or because it’s convenient to do so,” he says.