Overview
- Senate committees heard the Argentine Football Association warn that a total ban on betting sponsorships would endanger club finances and their social programs.
- AFA representatives urged limits on content and timing of ads, tougher penalties against illegal gambling, and explicit measures against match-fixing instead of an outright prohibition.
- The Catholic Church pressed for swift approval, describing gambling addiction as a silent pandemic harming adolescents and pointing to Córdoba’s experience after legalizing online betting.
- The most disputed provision would fully prohibit sports-linked betting advertising, now extended to include sports clothing, affecting clubs, broadcasters, the AFA and the national team.
- The initiative passed the Chamber of Deputies 139–36–59 last November and is under less than two months from losing parliamentary status, with reports of the PRO leaving the debate and UCR abstentions complicating talks.