Boulos meets supporter groups to discuss football after Brazil betting ban

Guilherme Boulos, minister of the Presidency's General Secretariat, was due to receive representatives of organised football supporter groups from across Brazil on 19 October at 14:00 at the Presidency's office on Avenida Paulista in São Paulo, according to a government agenda notice. The notice lists discussion of "the football landscape after the betting ban" and the groups' demands. The official text refers to about 30 supporter groups, while the published list names 23 plus the National Association of Organised Supporter Groups (Anatorg), which appears first.

The meeting takes place less than a week before the second round of the presidential election, in which Lula is seeking re-election. It was reported that Anatorg did not come to the meeting as a neutral observer: during this year's campaign the association published a list of "official candidates" on Instagram, and its president, Claudinho do Espírito Santo, a former president of Força Jovem do Vasco, presented Benedita da Silva (PT) as the association's and the supporter groups' Senate candidate for Rio, asked for votes for state deputy Zeidan (PT) and published a photo with President Lula holding the association's flag.

Reportedly, the agenda for the meeting does not provide for revisiting Provisional Measure 1.394, which Lula issued on 25 September and which banned the sector. The report said the notice refers to football "after" the ban as though the debate were closed, although the measure still depends on a vote in Congress and is being challenged at the Supreme Federal Court (STF). In September, when clubs and federations published a manifesto against restrictions on betting, Anatorg accused the club boards of prioritising their own interests and offered to take proposals to the government, the report said.

It was reported that the government also invited groups that oppose the measure. Three of the eight Flamengo supporter groups that signed a note against the provisional measure on 12 October are on the list: Raça Rubro-Negra, Flamanguaça and Torcida Jovem do Flamengo. According to the report, those groups said the ban was abrupt and threatens the clubs' finances.

The report noted that on Friday 16 October Boulos took part in a meeting between Caixa and Corinthians about the Neo Química Arena debt, with members of Gaviões da Fiel present, an initiative it said was criticised as part of a package of gestures ahead of the second round. Three days later Gaviões returns to a meeting with the minister. It was reported that the campaign of Flávio Bolsonaro has said it is counting on supporter groups' dissatisfaction with the end of betting to take votes from Lula.