CPI named Kajuru as President and Romario as football reporter for sports betting in Brazil

The allegations to be investigated by the CPI involve players, managers and betting companies. The creation of the CPI was announced on 12 March.

The CPI on Sports Betting (CPiae) was installed on Wednesday (10). Senator Romário (PL-RJ) was chosen as reporter. The presidency and vice-presidency were held by Senators Kajuru (PSB-GO) and Eduardo Girão (Novo-CE), respectively. At the installation meeting, the members made it clear that the aim of the collegiate body "is to put everything straight, opening up the black boxes", referring to allegations of match-fixing and sports betting.

Author of the request(RQS 158/2024) that gave rise to the CPI, Romário thanked the members for choosing him as football reporter, pledged to dedicate himself completely to the work of the collegiate body and said that in his report, "the right, transparency, fairness and honesty will prevail".

“I'm sure that this CPI has some objectives and we're going to achieve them. We know the problems that our football has experienced (...) over the years. Here are people who definitely want to put everything straight, they want to open the black boxes of these bookmakers that exist in our country, to understand, to know better what kind of manipulation has been going on and who the authors and actors of these manipulations are”,  said Romário.

The allegations to be investigated by the CPI involve players, managers and betting companies. In his request, Romário states that sports betting currently generates a lot of money and that the possible grooming of players and managers to manipulate results could jeopardise the credibility of the games.

Kajuru said that the CPI should start work next week and that the intention, as he explained, is to invite the owner of Botafogo's Sociedade Anônima do Futebol (SAF), John Textor, as its first witness.

"Textor, the owner of Botafogo, who all of Brazil is waiting for (...) will be our first guest. Brazil wants to know the evidence he has, the recordings he has, it would really be the bombastic start of this CPI.

In an interview, Textor claimed to have recordings that would prove the existence of corrupt refereeing in the Brazilian Football Championship.

Kajuru also said that, by consensus, the CPI will meet every Wednesday at 2pm. Exceptionally, when a longer testimony is scheduled, the commission may also meet on Mondays at 3pm.

In the assessment of the vice-president, Senator Eduardo Girão, the CPI will have the mission of recovering the credibility and essence of football which, according to him, is being affected by allegations of corruption and illegalities in sports betting.

"With the advent of sports betting, the risk, the great threat that Brazilian sport is suffering, especially football, became very clear. I believe that this team that is here has everything it takes to score, they have a lifetime of experience, especially Senator Kajuru and Senator Romário. They've spent their lives in sport, in sports writing, they're references in Brazil in this regard, and whatever I can do, I'll do. To collaborate, to try to correct what is wrong and punish those responsible. So that the CPI can remove this scourge of sports betting from the bowels, from the rot, from the underworld.

Measures

Kajuru also said that one of the punitive measures to be taken by the CPI, if it comes to the conclusion, with evidence, that there has been match-fixing, will be to ask the courts to ban the person responsible from football.

“Anyone who commits this kind of offence will be banned from football. There's no such thing as a one-year sentence and a 90-day suspension, there's no such thing. They will be banned. They'll have to find another profession to work in. And if you're not from Brazil, you'll be banned from Brazil, you won't even enter the country”.

Composition

The CPiae will be made up of 11 senators and 7 alternates, and will last 180 days. So far, the names defined as full members are those of Senators Veneziano Vital do Rêgo (MDB-PB), Marcio Bittar (União-AC), Otto Alencar (PSD-BA), Angelo Coronel (PSD-BA), Jorge Kajuru (PSB-GO), Chico Rodrigues (PSB-RR), Romário (PL-RJ) and Eduardo Girão (Novo-CE). Senators Giordano (MDB-SP), Efraim Filho (União-PB), Sérgio Petecão (PSD-AC) and Carlos Portinho (PL-RJ) were announced as alternates.

Agência Senado