Lula proposes a Ministry of Public Security financed in part with the collection of bets

The President of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), said last Thursday that he intends to create a Ministry of Public Security in case the Proposed Amendment to the Constitution (PEC) 18/2025, known as the PEC of Public Security, is approved by the National Congress.

During an interview with TV Globo's Jornal Nacional, Lula said that he has articulated the vote on the proposal with leaders of the Legislature, including the president of the Senate, Davi Alcolumbre (União-AP), and the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Hugo Motta (Republicans-PB). The president also mentioned the role of Senator Jaques Wagner (PT-BA) in the discussions on the processing of the matter.

"I am discussing it in the National Congress, it has now been put to a vote. That is why I had lunch with Alcolumbre and Hugo Motta. Vote for the PEC of Public Security, because, the moment it is approved, I create the Ministry of Public Security," he declared.

The proposal contains a point directly related to the sports betting and online gambling market. The text provides that 30% of the proceeds from the collection of the fixed-odds betting lottery, both in physical and virtual operations, will be used to finance funds linked to public security.

Specifically, the PEC allocates that 30% to the National Public Security Fund (FNSP) and the National Penitentiary Fund (Funpen). The proposal also includes the values recovered, apprehended, confiscated or definitively lost as a result of the illegal exploitation of the sector. The text has already been approved by the Chamber of Deputies and sent to the Senate.

Despite stressing the importance of the PEC during the interview, the president did not address the role of betting as one of the sources planned to expand investment in the area. Explaining his intention to create the new portfolio, Lula focused on the distribution of powers between administrations: "Why am I going to create the Ministry? Because first I want to establish what is the participation of each federated entity in Public Security. What is going to be the role of the Union, what is going to be that of the state and what is going to be that of the municipality," he said.

The linking of these resources becomes relevant in light of the sector's figures. According to data compiled by BNLData, in 2025 sports betting and online gambling allocated R$614.3 million to the National Public Security Fund, in addition to another R$25.1 million to Funapol, the fund for the equipment and operation of the Federal Police.

The growth trend continued in 2026. In the first half of the year, the National Public Security Fund had already received 328.08 million reais from the activity, while Funapol accumulated 72.18 million.

The PEC foresees investments in areas such as the fight against militias, the technological modernization of the security forces and the strengthening of the operational structure, in addition to mechanisms for the revaluation of professionals in the sector, including the discussion on minimum wages in the category. Maintaining the 2025 distribution criteria for all legal beneficiaries, it is estimated that an eventual loss of revenue linked to the betting market could reach, at least, R$1.35 billion.

The reinforcement of this dependence comes in a context of debate on possible restrictions on the sector in Brazil. Specialists consulted by BNLData warn that an eventual ban or more severe limitation of sports betting and online gambling could cause an estimated loss of 14,450 million reais in taxes and other legal destinations, according to 2025 data. Added to this would be the impact on investment in football, advertising and sports sponsorship contracts and thousands of jobs, as well as the risk of migration of bettors to illegal platforms, outside the scope of the audit.

For the federal government, the use of resources from legal bets is part of the strategy of formalization and control of the sector. Since the entry into force of Law No. 15,480/2026, part of the collection went to Funapol, while the blocking of resources from illegal companies, provided for in Decree No. 13,033/2026, is part of the offensive against unauthorized platforms. In the Executive's reading, the greater the participation of the formal market, the greater the collection destined to public funds.

If approved, the Public Security PEC would consolidate an increasingly direct relationship between the stability of the regulated betting market and the financing capacity of security policies in Brazil: while Lula articulates in Congress the approval of PEC 18/2025 and defends the creation of the new Ministry, betting is consolidating itself as one of the sources of resources that could economically sustain that structure.