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In the voyage of strengthening integrity in sport and combating match manipulation, Brazil has finally taken a big leap forward: from December 4 to 5, representatives of the Ministry of Sports joined a technical meeting of the Convention of the Council of Europe on the Manipulation of Sports Competitions, more commonly referred to as the Macolin Convention.
The move brings important progress in the country’s formal application to enter the international agreement that stands widely as the world’s pioneering set-up for preventing and sanctioning measures against sports manipulation.
The meeting, held virtually from Strasbourg, France, was represented by Brazil with Danilo Mendonça, General Coordinator of Sports Economic Development and a member of the Sports Betting Integrity Directorate.
Consolidating the Policies of Integrity
During this event, Denise Nóbrega, Director of Sports Betting Integrity, pointed out that for some time now, Brazil has been systematically working on improving its policy related to sports integrity. The progress made by the country, according to Nóbrega, reflects proper alignment with the best international practices and a strong commitment to fighting against the manipulation of sporting results.
She emphasized that this phase represents “a historic opportunity to raise the standard of protection for Brazilian sport”, highlighting institutional modernization and regulatory evolution as the cornerstones of the process.
A Crucial Milestone in the Accession Process
A major outcome of the December meeting was the positive technical assessment issued by the Convention’s expert body regarding Brazil’s application. This favorable opinion is an important milestone in representing formal recognition that Brazil has attained a regulatory and operational structure acceptable for the standards required by the treaty.
However, this does not involve full acceptance. The necessary, or rather decisive, phase will be the political evaluation by the Committee of Ministers in the Council of Europe. This review is expected in the first quarter of 2026.
Should the political disposition also be in its favor, Brazil will accord formal notification, and then the accession process proceeds to the National Congress, where internal ratification takes place.
The technical report praised the continuously improving regulatory framework for sports betting in Brazil, citing its focus on integrity initiatives. It also reaffirmed that developing a national platform to fight the manipulation of competition projects, already identified as one of the priorities of the Ministry of Sports, is important.
About the Macolin Convention
The Macolin Convention is the first and only international convention dedicated to the manipulation of sports competitions. This cooperation framework unites the public authorities, sports organizations, betting operators, and regulating bodies all under one roof. Its main goals include:
Preventing manipulation of sports results
Detecting suspicious activities across the sports and betting ecosystem
Strengthening transparency and information sharing
Sanctioning offenders through coordinated national and international mechanisms
Only with adherence to the Convention would Brazil be in a position to become a member within the global framework established for the preservation of the integrity of sport and to reinforce its effectiveness in combating match-fixing, illegal betting markets, and corruption.
A New Chapter for Brazilian Sports Governance
Brazil’s advanced application to the Macolin Convention shows strategic policy commitment to modern governance and international cooperation. It does so with regulatory reforms well underway and new institutional structures in elaboration, each purposed to protect the country’s athletes, competitions better, and the broader sports ecosystem.
If approved politically and then ratified domestically, accession by Brazil would be a transformative step towards strengthening the national integrity framework, aligning the country with world standards, and reinforcing its determination to combat manipulation of sport competitions on all fronts.
Source: iGaming Today
