February 6 – When the Brasileirão Série A kicked off last week, only 12 of the league’s 20 clubs were carrying a betting company as their master sponsor, down from 18 last season. An eye-popping drop in the age where gambling sponsorship, where allowed, is seemingly driving the world’s game.
Bahia, Coritiba, Grêmio, Internacional, Santos, and Vasco da Gama are still shopping for their valuable front-of-shirt sponsorship, while Red Bull Bragantino and Mirassol are promoting their own brands rather than renting the space to bookmakers.
Brazilian football has been built on passion and emotion, but with betting money distorting the playing field and raising morality questions, a retreat seemed inevitable. However, Michel Fauze Mattar, a professor at the FIA business school, sees it as an ‘adjustment’ rather than a large-scale ‘exodus’.
“The temporary absence of master sponsors is the result of a combination of factors: saturation of betting brands in football, changes in the regulatory environment that increased costs and risks for these companies, and a market repricing after an artificially inflated cycle,” he says.
The Brazilian FA’s new Financial Sustainability System arrives this year, with sporting sanctions set to begin in 2028, meaning historical debts must be settled by November.
“In this scenario, clubs will naturally have to recalibrate their expectations and operate in a more rational market, diversifying sponsors, expanding commercial packages, and reducing dependence on a single master contract. This process must be accompanied by greater financial discipline and cost control,” said Fauze Mattar.
With new regulations, public scrutiny grows, and morality and regulator scrutiny is beginning to brush up against the balance sheet. Gambling addiction is becoming widespread, and players are tempted to tip the scales in more ways than one.
This maybe is a reason why betting firms are pulling back, and Mattar believes clubs will have little choice but to adapt.
“Financial fair play requires clubs to integrate the generation of new revenue with efficient expense management,” Mattar added. “Financial sustainability now becomes a regulatory requirement for sporting competitiveness, not a strategic choice.”
With a football economy that has become so deeply and so quickly entwined with gambling, this could be the first step towards a healthier, less dependent future. Whether the game in Brazil wants that is another wager entirely.
Contact the writer of this story at moc.l1770355211labto1770355211ofdlr1770355211owedi1770355211sni@r1770355211etsbe1770355211w.kci1770355211n1770355211
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