SBC Lisbon: Brazil is still not for beginners
Day one of SBC Lisbon gets off with a bang as long-time Gambling Insider contributor Neil Montgomery moderates a panel on the Brazilian sports betting space.
Key points:
– Neil Montgomery led a panel on the Brazil market at SBC Lisbon
– There is still a long way to go to ward off illegal gaming
The sun is high over a sweltering Lisbon skyline as escapees from the heat flock into the Feira Internacional de Lisboa for this anticipated overview of the Brazilian landscape, which considers the under-predicted strict regulatory path Brazil has taken to its newly opened sports betting market.
The panel features BetMGM CEO Almir Silva; Pay4Fun CEO Leonardo Baptista; UX Group Board Advisor Roberto Regianini; President of the Instituto Brasileiro de Jogo Responsável Andre Gelfi; and is moderated by Gambling Insider contributor Neil Montgomery, Founding and Managing Partner of Montgomery Associates.
With introductions out of the way, Montgomery introduces the topic as the ‘bubble that just won’t burst.’ Of course, as he continues, we know that the market will slow in its momentous growth eventually, despite the 80 licensed companies that have now entered the market.
Montgomery introduces Leonardo Baptista, who introduces the challenge of competing with the large black market that remains active in Brazil. Indeed, the panel specifies that this currently could account for as much as 50% of the market, despite recent PIX-related regulations introduced to try and tackle the unregulated space.
Baptista takes a look back over the launch of regulated sports betting in Brazil, highlighting two key considerations for the current landscape: The maximum value for TED or PIX withdrawals for gambling is now limited to BRL 15,000 ($2,826) – creating, in his opinion, a damaged user experience – alongside increased costs for operators.
Now, operators can no longer open a payment institution without a licence from Brazil’s Central Bank, with recent laws now demanding that payment institutions in Brazil request a licence by March 2026, and will lose the ability to operate in Brazil should they not obtain a licence. Baptista underlines that the introduction of these measures, he hopes, will help reduce black market activity in the region.
It is also highlighted by the panel that while the Government is in a delicate position, it has received a lot of criticism for continuously changing regulations, impacting the development of any equilibrium within the market.
Andre Gelfi said: “Combating the illegal market is what we are trying to do at the end of the day.” Gelfi also underlines that the regulated market is already at a very impressive point as the third-largest marketplace in the world.
Montgomery highlights that everything is now, and so all operators are looking to maximise market share.
He poses the question of advertising restrictions to the panel. BetMGM Brazil CEO Almir Silva answers, stating that, first of all, Brazil is an amazing market to participate in. However, the competition and regulation make the market very tough.
The present restrictions, Silva notes, that operators have the potential and possibility to advertise through a diverse number of mediums – be it radio, billboards, TV or more – and it will help to differentiate between legal and illegal operators. Because of this, he concludes that right now is too soon for harsh restrictions, as players need to be able to know which regulated operators to turn to in order to remain protected.
Next, UX Group Board Advisor Roberto Regianini gives the local operator’s perspective. He says that what we are currently seeing is rapid market consolidation, ahead of what people were predicting for Brazil this year. The number of ways for market operators to reach out to players is increasing rapidly, and the main players with regard to dominating companies are already reducing to around 25-30. There also seems to be a large governmental involvement, which, while yielding some positives, creates a lot of uncertainty and could lead to foreign operators being driven out of the market.
As a local operator in the market, the sole goal is to remain profitable and compliant, as there is simply too much peripheral action in the market to consider anything other than those two absolute basics
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