Is this the end of Blaze? Anatel accepts court decision to take bookmakers off the air throughout Brazil.
A São Paulo criminal court judge ordered access to the site to be blocked and pointed to signs of fraud based on customer complaints; Anatel ordered providers to comply with the measure.
The Lottery House
tags:
sports betting
justice
Blaze
Blaze down
On Monday (4), the National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel) accepted a request from the São Paulo courts to take down the Blaze bookmaker's website throughout Brazil. The company is one of those mentioned in the CPI of Financial Pyramids.
According to the document signed by Anatel's Superintendent of Inspection, Marcelo Alves da Silva, the Blaze website must be blocked immediately. Although the decision was signed at 3.05pm, the site is still online, but is already showing instability for some users.
The Rise of the Blaze
Blaze's history as a bookmaker begins in 2010, when the company was founded by a group of entrepreneurs with a passion for sports and gambling. Initially, the company operated mainly in European markets, where online sports betting was already popular. However, as the global online betting market expanded, Blaze also expanded its operations to serve an increasingly diverse customer base.
One of the reasons for Blaze's initial success was its easy-to-use online betting platform, as well as the wide range of sports and events available to bet on. The company also stood out for offering competitive odds and attractive bonuses to its customers, which helped it attract a loyal user base.
Arrival in Brazil
Brazil has always been an attractive market for betting companies due to the large number of sports fans in the country. However, for many years, sports betting was largely illegal in Brazil, which limited the growth potential of companies in the sector. This began to change in 2018, when the Brazilian Supreme Court ruled that sports betting could be regulated and legalized throughout the country.
This decision opened the door for companies like Blaze to enter the Brazilian market. Blaze, like many other bookmakers, saw Brazil as a promising market and began operating in the country as soon as the regulations came into force. The company partnered with local soccer teams, sponsoring sporting events and investing in publicity through famous names such as Neymar, Carlinhos Maia, Felipe Neto, Jon Vlogs and several others, to attract Brazilian sports betting enthusiasts.
Main sponsorships
In April of this year, Santos and Blaze formalized a master sponsorship contract, establishing him as the main sponsor of the club's shirt, worth R$45 million, valid for two years. The negotiation was brokered by Neymar's father, who received a commission equivalent to 10% of this amount, totaling R$4.5 million, on behalf of his company, NN Consultoria. The veracity of this information was confirmed by Andrés Rueda, the president of Santos, during his testimony to the CPI.
Neymar's father was also summoned to give evidence to the CPI. However, the inclusion of his testimony on the agenda was suspended after he, through his lawyers, provided documents that have the potential to assist the ongoing investigations. It is important to note that this suspension does not prevent the businessman from being summoned again in the future, if it turns out that the documents already submitted are not sufficient to fully clarify the situation.
Problems with the courts
In recent years, the company has been the target of investigations and lawsuits related to alleged illegal activities. Some of the accusations include money laundering, fraud and tax evasion.
These allegations have caused great controversy and affected Blaze's reputation in Brazil. The company denies all the accusations and claims that it operates in accordance with Brazilian law. However, the investigations and lawsuits continue to cast a shadow over its operations in the country.
Blaze is the target of accusations
Blaze is the target of thousands of complaints across Brazil. In July, for example, a group of Belo Horizonte residents reportedly lost R$6 million after being convinced by an influencer to "invest" through the Blaze platform. One of the victims claimed to have invested money in the hope of paying for her son's treatment.
Blaze's future in Brazil is uncertain, and the company faces significant obstacles as it seeks to operate legally and transparently in the country. The resolution of these issues will largely depend on the decisions of the regulatory authorities and the Brazilian judicial system. In the meantime, Blaze continues to face competitive pressure in a growing market, which makes its path in Brazil even more challenging.