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As Brazil prepares to host the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup, the federal government is following through with a proposal that may redefine sports education and public financing models. A new bill put forward to Congress introduces the establishment of the Federal University of Sports, modeled after an innovative and controversial method of financing its activities: with part of the federal revenue raised from fixed-odds betting and online games of chance.
Of the profits derived from betting, a share should be allocated to the Ministry of Sports to fund, at least in part, the new institution. The supplementary sources of funding would be the federal budget, revenue from services provided, partnerships, and cooperation agreements. According to the government, the project is a legacy one linked directly to the Women’s World Cup, for the strengthening of research into sport, education, and vocational training within the country.
A New Model for Sports Education in Brazil
The future university will have its headquarters in Brasília, starting activities in 2027. On its initial opening, the university will have five undergraduate courses and another five post-graduate specialization programs, expanding to a total of 11 courses at the undergraduate level within four years. It is forecasted to cater for around 3,000 students after the university has reached full capacity.
The government, in turn, has stressed that there would be no immediate rise in personnel costs because hiring and expansion would depend on the budget allocations approved in the federal budget.
The project aims to consolidate teaching, research, and innovation in several sports disciplines. It also expresses the need for strengthening the training structures in the areas of athletes, coaches, managers, referees, and sports professionals in general-in all those fields where Brazil, despite having a good sporting culture, has lacked systematic academic development.
Addressing Inequality and Structural Challenges in Women’s Football
A central motivation for the new institution stems from persistent structural problems in Brazilian women’s football. The proposal outlines several challenges:
The women’s game is described as “predominantly amateur,” with only 19.2% of female athletes holding professional contracts.
Just 1.2% have a formal development contract.
45% of workers involved in women’s football are men, despite the sport’s focus on promoting female participation.
Reports of discrimination remain widespread:
41% of Black workers and
31% of Indigenous workers say they have been victims of racism in their roles.
The report also refers to a striking imbalance of coaches and managerial figures in Brazilian football. While 57% of top-flight male professional players in Brazil are Black or brown, no Black head coach managed a Série A club in 2023, and only 17% of assistant coaches that year were Black. These data point to systemic barriers the university hopes to help address through education, research, and professional training pipelines.
Betting Revenue as a Strategic Funding Source
One of the more controversial elements of the plan is the employment of fixed-odds betting revenue. Since the regulation of betting in Brazil has grown so extensively and so rapidly, the sector stands as an increasingly large, yet now stable, source of federal income. Partially apportioning these revenues to sports education, the government said it has found a way to provide an enduring funding source without increasing public spending immediately.
Supporters argue that this model aligns the booming betting industry with social investment, turning proceeds from gambling into long-term national development. Critics, on the other hand, caution about linking educational funding to a volatile sector and raise ethical concerns regarding the reliance on betting.
Still, the government insists that the funding structure will help ensure the Federal University of Sports is financially sustainable and capable of growing over time.
A Legacy-Oriented Project for 2027 and Beyond
It is positioned as part of Brazil’s Women’s World Cup legacy, reshaping the landscape of sports research, professional training, and diversity within the sector. If passed, it would represent one of the most important federal educational initiatives regarding sport since the country’s big reforms at the beginning of the 2000s.
How the plan takes shape in Congress will determine how Brazil decides upon the integration of education, sports policy, and betting regulation into a single long-term national strategy.
Source: Metrópoles
