Written by: Aloisio Szczecinski Filho and Marília Prestes
As the World Cup approaches, a tradition whose legal repercussions are often unknown or overlooked resurfaces in corporate environments: the collective betting pool. When this practice takes place in the workplace, company managers must assess whether it is being carried out in compliance with legal requirements , especially if the pool is organized by the institution itself.
To be noted: Article 50 of Decree-Law No. 3,688/1941 (the Misdemeanor Offenses Act) criminalizes as a minor criminal offense the act of establishing or operating a game of chance in a public place or a place accessible to the public. Although social tolerance for the World Cup pool is widespread and enforcement is, in practice, exceedingly rare, the regulatory framework does not cease to apply merely by virtue of custom.
The concrete risk, however, does not lie in a symbolic pool among a few colleagues. It materializes as the practice gains scale, begins to involve significant sums, generates economic benefit for the organizer, or starts to interfere with work activities. In such scenarios, the company may be held liable, even if the initiative originated exclusively with employees, with no direct involvement by management. After all, responsibility for the work environment rests with the employer, and that responsibility does not go on recess during the World Cup.
Hence the importance of establishing, in advance, clear rules on the subject. More than preventing disputes, it is a matter of exercising what is most relevant in the contemporary application of Labor Law: adapting the rule to the reality of organizations and transforming potential risks into opportunities for connection.
A legally sound and culturally richer alternative is to encourage the replacement of cash prizes with incentives tied to the workplace itself. The possibilities are wide-ranging and may be tailored to the culture of each organization.
With this approach, the company eliminates the legal risk associated with the circulation of money among employees while, at the same time, enhancing precisely what the pool already naturally produces: a sense of belonging, cross-team interaction, and a strengthened organizational climate. In other words, it converts an informal custom into an engagement asset, achieving the intended outcome in full compliance with applicable law.
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This material is for informational purposes only and does not substitute for the analysis of specific cases. The assessment and implementation of these practices in the workplace require specialized legal counsel.