Caixa, Petrobras, Banco do Brasil and BNDES allocated R$1.6 billion for this purpose, according to a newspaper survey; companies defend sponsorships
The four state-owned companies with the highest revenue controlled by the president’s government (PT) spent R$1.6 billion on sponsorship contracts in 2025. Adjusted for inflation, the number grew 52.5% compared to the previous year. R$539.6 million more was spent on advertising.
The survey was carried out by the newspaper based on the transparency pages of the mentioned state companies. The numbers considered are not amounts spent, but new contracts signed each year. Some are for immediate disbursement and others provide for long-term payments.
A allocated R$ 277.4 million more in sponsorship from 2024 to 2025. The (National Bank for Economic and Social Development) had the biggest proportional increase in the period. Last year, the state-owned company multiplied its sponsorship contracts by 15 compared to the previous year.
See the advancement of sponsorship spending from 2024 to 2025:
- Box – was R$374.7 million and went to R$652.1 million;
- Petrobras – was R$380.1 million and went to R$527.7 million;
- Bank of Brazil – was R$267.4 million and went to R$289.2 million;
- BNDES – was R$6.5 million and went to R$99.3 million.
The biggest sponsorship contracts are for sporting activities. Among the beneficiaries are the Brazilian Paralympic Committee and the Brazilian Athletics Confederation.
WHAT COMPANIES SAY
To the newspaper, all the state-owned companies mentioned defended the sponsorship contracts.
Caixa said that the increase was mainly due to multi-year agreements, “whose values are fully recorded upon contracting, but with disbursements spread over the years”.
The BNDES stated that it resumed sponsored projects in 2023 after a shutdown from 2020 to 2022. According to the bank, the values for 2025 returned to the average of the years prior to the shutdown period.
Petrobras declared that it has strategically expanded its sponsorships and that they are a tool to boost economic and social development, in addition to strengthening the institutional image of the company itself.
Finally, Banco do Brasil said that the expansion of sponsorship contracts in the period “reflects the continuity of the bank’s strategy of strengthening its brand positioning, through initiatives that generate connections with different audiences”.
