Flamengo and the record sponsor that highlights the economic gap in Brazilian football

Flamengo has once again set a milestone in South American soccer. The team led by Filipe Luís announced a historic contract with the renowned betting company Betano, which will become its main sponsor in exchange for 46 million dollars per season, an unprecedented figure for Brazil and one that even places it above European powerhouses such as Atlético de Madrid in the global sponsorship ranking.

The agreement is not limited to the men's first team, as it also includes Olympic disciplines such as volleyball, basketball, and women's soccer, in addition to presence on FlamengoTV, consolidating the club's strategy to diversify revenue and expand its brand globally. Final approval will be given on August 19 at the Deliberative Council.

The magnitude of the agreement reflects a scenario that highlights the significant difference between Brazilian soccer and the rest of South America. While in Argentina clubs largely depend on player sales and sponsors far below these figures (with contracts that rarely exceed 5 million dollars per year), in Brazil institutions not only secure multi-million dollar deals but also receive much higher prizes in local and international tournaments.

To grasp the magnitude of this historic agreement, River, the richest club in the country, signed a sponsorship deal with the same brand in May for an amount almost 8 times lower than what Mengao agreed to (6 million dollars + taxes).

Meanwhile, the Professional League itself introduced Betano as its naming sponsor in 2024, with the championship renamed as Torneo Betano. However, the company's entry into the country is far from the economic impact it caused at Flamengo, where the partnership nearly quadruples the sponsorship revenue of any Argentine club.

In this context, the Rio de Janeiro team is consolidating itself as one of the most powerful giants in the region. Its financial capacity not only allows it to maintain squads of international caliber but also to compete in the market with offers that are unattainable for the rest of the South American teams.