Brazil has taken another step towards legal and regulated sports betting after the country’s Lower House and Senate voted in favour of MP 846 bill initially was signed in December 2018 by departing President Michel Temer.
Now, the only hurdle that remains for the bill to be sanctioned into law is the signature of recently elected far-right President Jair Bolsonaro. During his presidential campaign, he issued ambiguous declarations, but in the past, he voted against gambling legislation proposals. Bolsonaro also has political allies such as Magno Malta (PR-ES) and Onyx Lorenzoni (DEM-RS), opponents of legalized gambling in the nation.
However, some analysts believe that it’s possible he will approve the bill, as he and his economic team know that gambling can be used to improve tax collections and generate employment. Which would not happen if such a huge market would be kept outside the law.
If MP 846 would be ratified, locally-based operators would be forced to pay out at least 80 per cent of their handle to bettors, with gross revenues capped at 14 percent and government-funded programs taking the remaining six percent.
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