Bap and the Controversy Around Betting on Flamengo

Luiz Eduardo Baptista, better known as Bap, is famous for his explosive statements. In an interview with the Spanish newspaper As at the beginning of the year, he did not hesitate to say that “Flamengo is in Brazil today by chance, because Flamengo is an island in Brazil.” Believing that his European colleagues are a great source of inspiration, he added: “In every decision I make, I think: ‘If Flamengo were in Europe, what decision would I make?’”.

Concerns about the ban on bets

Recently, Bap chatted on MengoCast, on FlaTV, and brought up his concerns after the ban on sports betting, established by a provisional measure signed by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on Friday (25). Flamengo, for its part, was one of the clubs that signed a letter called “End of football,” published days before that MP.

“The unilateral ban, in the way it was, at the time it was, is very difficult for us to understand”, Bap said, expressing his concern about the future contracts the club has committed to. And he got straight to the point: “How am I going to pay Paquetá in January?”

Speaking of Paquetá, the player was signed from West Ham for about R$ 315 million, and that amount is paid in installments through 2028. In 2025, Flamengo had already reached the impressive mark of R$ 2 billion in gross revenue, and the following year it decided to invest almost one third of a billion in a single player. Now, Bap says he is indignant that he was not considered in Lula’s decision.

Impact of bets in Brazil

It’s worth noting that betting contributed R$ 141 billion to Brazil’s GDP. However, the side effects of this created a social cost of R$ 38,8 billion, including mental health programs and suicide prevention. This situation led to the death of some people who, because of the debts accumulated from betting, could not recover. Ludopathy is a serious disease, exacerbated by the betting reward mechanisms and the ease of access to this addiction.

Reflection on Paquetá and Lula’s decisions

Now, about Paquetá… It’s complicated. Bap mentions an athlete who was accused (without evidence) of match-fixing to benefit the betting market as an example.

In the end, how absurd is it to see the President of the Republic make a decision aimed at the general population (including Flamengo’s fans) without considering the impact on the budget of the richest club in the country (which, according to Bap, is “here by chance”). Talking about installments for the most expensive signing in Brazilian football and not evaluating future contracts in light of such a current issue is, at the very least, infuriating.

Now, whenever I’m going to make a decision, I’m going to ask myself: “Will we be able to pay for Paquetá?”