While the FIFA World Cup is underway, a period when the sports betting industry concentrates much of its advertising investment, one organisation has launched an initiative based on the opposite strategy: paying content creators to promote messages critical of the betting market.
Called Desafio Contra Bets (Challenge Against Betting), the competition will distribute BRL 100 thousand ($19,300) in prizes for content published on social media about the economic, social and public health impacts attributed to fixed-odds betting. The initiative is organised by Projeto Brief, which is linked to the civil society organisation Quid. The winners will be announced on 23 July.
Although the competition presents itself as an initiative aimed at fostering public debate, the material provided to participants focuses on a single perspective of the regulated betting market. The competition rules and the “Creator Kit” instruct participants on which arguments to prioritise, which statistics to use and which approaches to avoid when producing content.
Among the guidelines, the organisers suggest emphasising negative impacts attributed to betting, including gambling-related debt, mental health and sports advertising. At the same time, the material does not address indicators related to the economic effects of the regulation implemented in 2025, such as tax revenue, job creation, private investment, efforts to combat the illegal market and funding for sports.
Betting sector generates billions in tax revenue
Since the regulated market came into force in January 2025, authorised companies have been required to pay specific taxes, supervisory fees and corporate taxes that did not exist when a large share of operations was conducted from overseas.
Data released by Brazil’s Ministry of Finance in 2026 show that tax revenue from the sector nearly doubled during the first four months of the year, reaching BRL 4.5 billion ($865.4 million), compared with BRL 2.2 billion ($423.1 million) recorded during the same period in 2025. During the first full year of the regulated market, federal revenue linked to the betting market reached nearly BRL 10 billion ($1.92 billion), making the sector one of the largest contributors to tax revenue within Brazil’s digital economy.
In addition to tax collection, regulation encouraged private investment in technology, compliance, payment services, marketing and infrastructure. A study prepared by LCA Consultores and Cruz Consulting estimates that the regulated market has already attracted BRL 7.5 billion ($1.44 billion) in investment, with the potential to generate BRL 28 billion ($5.38 billion) in additional demand for other sectors of the economy through indirect and induced effects.
The same study projects that revenue generated by licensed operators reached approximately BRL 36 billion ($6.92 billion) in 2025, reflecting the formalisation of an activity that had previously operated largely without national oversight.
Market created skilled formal employment
Another aspect absent from the campaign material concerns the labour market.
According to the economic study, the regulated sector currently accounts for approximately 15,500 direct and indirect jobs, with an average salary of nearly BRL 7,000 ($1,346), more than double the national average. Regulation has also driven the creation of new roles related to software development, risk analysis, sports integrity, data science, information security and compliance.
The campaign kit also dedicates part of its narrative to the presence of betting in Brazilian football. However, it does not provide context that regulated companies have become the leading sponsors of the national sport. In 2025, 18 of the 20 Série A clubs had licensed betting operators as their main shirt sponsors, generating approximately BRL 1.1 billion ($211.5 million) per season through sponsorship agreements. These resources fund player payrolls, youth academies, infrastructure and other operational expenses for clubs.
Regulation also strengthened consumer protection mechanisms
Another change introduced by regulation was the implementation of mandatory consumer protection measures and operational monitoring mechanisms. Currently, 85 authorised operators, representing 187 brands, submit daily information to the Betting Management System (Sigap), developed by Serpro for the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA). According to Serpro, the platform processes around 500 million records per day, enabling the regulator to monitor bets, financial transactions, digital wallets and operator activity. In addition, licensed companies are required to implement CPF identification, facial recognition, suspicious transaction monitoring, anti-money laundering policies, responsible gambling programmes and self-exclusion mechanisms for bettors.
Government enforcement against the illegal market has also intensified. During the first year of the regulated market, the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA) and Anatel removed more than 15,400 illegal webpages and domains, while opening 66 supervisory proceedings involving 93 operators, of which 35 have already resulted in sanctions. During the same period, 24 financial and payment institutions reported 277 suspicious transactions, leading to the closure of accounts belonging to 255 individuals and legal entities linked to illegal betting. The SPA also notified 13 payment institutions to stop providing services to illegal operators, resulting in the closure of accounts held by 45 companies operating outside the regulatory framework.
The economic data do not eliminate concerns related to problem gambling, indebtedness or betting advertising, issues that continue to be discussed by experts, public authorities and civil society organisations. On the other hand, they also demonstrate that regulation has produced significant economic and fiscal effects by increasing public revenue, formalising employment, attracting investment and establishing oversight mechanisms that did not exist when the market operated without specific rules. These aspects are not included among the arguments presented in the material distributed to participants in the Desafio Contra Bets competition.
This article was first published on the Portuguese SiGMA News page on 3 July 2026.
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