How a former lawyer and judge helped the president of the National Association of Games and Lotteries of Brazil – G3 Newswire

Plinio Lemos Jorge, President of Brazil’s National Association of Gaming and Lotteries (ANJL), spoke to G3 about his work as a renowned lawyer and former judge at the Sao Paulo Tax Court, and how that experience contributes to his role in the ANJL and the fight against illegal gambling.

G3: You come to this position from tax law and not directly from the betting sector. How has this experience influenced the way you represent operators today?

PLZH: Experience in tax and corporate law adds value to the work I did as President of the National Association of Gaming and Lotteries (ANJL) in several ways. Coming from a background in the judiciary, I believe that qualities such as listening, technical understanding and the ability to make decisions based on multiple elements related to each topic contribute to our management. Another point is that the tax structure in Brazil is complex and full of small details that companies need to pay attention to in order to optimize their operations and achieve the best results. We have fought hard, together with the National Congress, for two years in a row to prevent a significant increase in the tax burden on the sector. Today Brazil has one of the highest tax burdens in the world in terms of rates
industry, exceeding 45 percent, but it could have been worse if we had not acted intensively with both the legislative and executive branches of government, technically demonstrating all the disadvantages of raising taxes on the industry. There are still new battles ahead, such as the determination of the poll tax rate, and in this scenario, I believe that my experience will continue to contribute to achieving the best outcome for operators. Therefore, technical knowledge of these issues is another positive aspect in leading our work in the association.

G3: ANJL takes an active stance on topics such as taxation of prizes and minimum payout rates. Could you explain how the association practically forms its position on such a technical topic? Who is involved in these discussions within the company?

PLZH: The ANJL Council, composed of representatives of member companies, participates in technical discussions. The Association also relies on consultants who work on both a permanent and intermittent basis, depending on the needs of each situation. When discussing more complex decisions that could lead to significant changes to the betting sector as a whole, we involve all participants in meetings to discuss the topic together. This is an intense listening exercise because although we represent an entire industry and have common interests, there are times when there are different interpretations of the actions that need to be taken. Our job is to reach consensus on what is best for the sector. And we managed to do this successfully.

G3: What is the most constructive conversation you’ve had with a regulator recently?
or legislator – the moment when you felt real progress?

PLZH: This was a partnership with Anatel and the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA) in a cooperation agreement that provided the creation of an industry information laboratory dedicated to monitoring, intelligence production and technical analysis of the betting market. This dialogue arose out of the need to intensify the fight against the illegal market and has yielded good results.

G3: You have already said that the fight against the illegal market is the main activity of ANJL. What would be a realistic and achievable next goal on this front?

PLZH: Our association is actively involved in the fight against illegal operators, including by developing tools to identify these sites, sending this information to the supervisory authority and thus obtaining blocking orders. The big problem with illegal sites is that once their URLs are blocked, they will reactivate via a different URL soon after. There is still no technology that can automatically monitor these platforms and permanently block them, as well as prevent the emergence of new versions of them. We commend the investigations and police operations that have exposed the financial structures of these illegal companies with the aim of suppressing them. We believe this is an effective way to dismantle the organizations behind these facilities and hope to make these actions permanent.

G3: Andre Feldman, the founder, and Wesley Cardia, your predecessor, helped build ANJL’s initial authority in Congress. What do you feel like you’ve added to that foundation during your tenure?

PLZH: Their work played a fundamental role in the formation and structuring of the ANJL, which became the main representative voice of the betting sector in the country. Since I took office as President in 2024, work has focused on consolidating the structure as well as attracting new members. In a relatively recent market that has faced so many attacks from different fronts, it is imperative that we strive for as much representativeness as possible by bringing together the relevant players in the sector, not just the betting operators themselves, but all the companies involved in this betting ecosystem.

G3: What would you like operators who are just starting out in the Brazilian market to understand about working with ANJL – something that is not obvious from the outside?

First, it is important to emphasize that ANJL only accepts a new member after a thorough analysis of the company, including areas such as governance, compliance, finance, etc. This process is important because our work also includes factors such as reputation and trust in the market as a whole. Therefore, working with us and becoming a member means actively participating in the promotion and protection of the industry, showing the Brazilian public and various stakeholders the importance of having a regulated betting market in Brazil. No one can do this alone. That is why joining efforts in this direction is of fundamental importance.

G3: What do you usually do outside of betting? Is there anything in your past that still directly influences your opinion of the sector today?

PLZH: Given the intensity of the demands, I have little time to devote to other activities. But in my free time, I always focus on updating my legal knowledge, reading good works and understanding the current landscape of legal and academic issues.

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