Flamengo President: Betting Ban Could Cost Football $500M

Flamengo's president, Luis Eduardo Baptista, has put a figure on the cost of Brazil's new betting ban: half a billion dollars for the game as a whole.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva signed decrees on 25 September banning all online betting activity in Brazil, including advertising and sponsorship by bookmakers. The ban took effect immediately, though Congress has 120 days to approve or reject it — a rejection would overturn the decree. Clubs have until 5 October to strip betting branding from shirts and stadiums.

"By my estimate, the football industry could lose half a billion dollars. And the decision comes at a very awkward moment: clubs are drawing up next year's budgets right now. On top of that, it makes finding new sponsors harder," Baptista said.

Bookmakers hold the shirt-sponsorship deal at 14 of the 20 clubs in Brazil's top flight. Flamengo's own contract is the largest in the country, worth around $50m a year. In 2025, betting firms put roughly $200m into league sponsorship — about 33% of all commercial income in the division. Clubs' commercial revenue more than doubled between 2021 and 2025, from around $240m to $570m, with betting money a key driver of that growth.

If the decree survives its 120-day window in Congress, clubs face rebuilding a third of their sponsorship income inside a single transfer window, with Flamengo carrying the furthest to fall.