President Lula (PT) stated in an interview with Rede TV broadcast this Sunday (10) that he is in favor of a proposal by Senator Jorge Kajuru (PSB-GO) for the government, through decree, to ban bets related to yellow and red cards , manual throw, penalty and corner in football games.
Bets made by bets, according to the senator’s proposal, would only be possible on the final result of the game.
The statements were made during an interview with Kajuru and senator Leila Barros (PDT-DF) on the PODK Liberados program. The conversation was recorded on Wednesday (6).
Lula said he agreed with Kajuru’s proposal after the senator cited the case of Flamengo player Bruno Henrique.
On Tuesday (5), one day before the interview, the Federal Police and Gaeco (Special Action Group to Combat Organized Crime), from the Federal District Prosecutor’s Office, carried out an operation to investigate possible card manipulation to benefit sports bettors.
The main person being investigated is the Flamengo striker. The athlete’s family members, including his brother, cousin and sister-in-law, are suspected of having bet on the player’s card. Bruno Henrique is being investigated for a yellow card he received in the 50th minute of the second half of the match between Flamengo and Santos, for the 2023 Brazilian Championship.
In the play, the athlete Soteldo, then at Santos, is close to the corner flag and risks a dribble over Bruno Henrique. The red-black player tries to stop him, and referee Rafael Rodrigo Klein calls a foul. After the yellow card, Bruno Henrique received a straight red card for complaining. Santos won 2-1.
“That’s it, I think it’s correct. I think it’s correct because people can even manipulate the result of the game, but it’s much more difficult than manipulating the yellow card where the player, naughty, can provoke the referee to get the yellow card”, said Lula after the senator presents the proposal.
Lula cited another case of suspicion related to betting, involving Lucas Paquetá.
The Brazilian national team midfielder was accused by the FA (Football Association, the English football federation) of committing fouls and receiving yellow cards in four Premier League matches, in 2022 and 2023.
The objective, according to the accusation, was to benefit friends of the player who bet on receiving a yellow card in matches.
“I think this proposal of yours is the most decent in the world, you bet on the result, that’s it,” Lula told Kajuru.
