After gaining the approval of the Minister of Economy Paulo Guedes, the project that will privatize sports betting in Brazil is now awaiting Jair Bolsonaro’s direct evaluation.

Earlier this month, the gambling modality was included in the Investment Partnerships Program (PPI), through which the Government aims to create jobs and mitigate the negative consequences caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

On Friday 19, Minister Guedes approved the project and it was published in the Official Gazette (DOU). With the new approval, sports betting may be included in the National Privatization Program (PND), in case Bolsonaro also supports the measure, according to BNL Data.

The document establishes “the need to reorder the strategic position of the State in the economy, and to transfer the activities improperly exploited by the public sector to the private one.” The government seeks to regulate sports betting and establish the public service concession process, according to Law No. 13,756.

“The modality in question will be operated entirely at the expense and risk of private concessionaires, under effective regulation of the national state, freeing the government to act in an area of ​​deep spending on technology and with a high innovation.”

In addition, the text mentions that the federal government will be the “main beneficiary of the success of the operation” through the collection of taxes and licenses. It is likely that there will be multiple operators, and therefore Brazil will need to develop a systematic monitoring system to guarantee integrity in sports.

“The Ministry of Economy will act as the granting authority and will be responsible for the regulation of the sector. The National Bank for Economic and Social Development will prepare the studies and the execution of the bidding process for the concession, considering the successful experience of the recent privatization of instant lotteries (Lotex) in the country,” read the document.