where does the betting money go?

If you usually bet on social gamesyou must have realized that not all the money that was spent by bettors is returned in the form of prizes.

If we refer, for example, to Totoloto – since in Euromillions the total value of bets concerns all participating countries – we realize that the Portuguese may have bet one million euros, but the total value for prizes is around 500 thousand euros .

He certainly calculates that the Santa Casa da Misericórdia has its own expenses, such as the remuneration of the mediators, and he may even know about another project managed by the institution, but what is the destination of what is left?

After all, when you’re playing are you helping? AND who are the beneficiaries of this aid?

Social games: when playing who is helping?

The legislation, more specifically Law No. 23/2018, stipulates that the allocation of revenue from social games “is allocated to a multitude of beneficiary entities, allocated to social purposes, allowing the development of a balanced network and equitable educational, cultural and eminently social support”.

From here you can understand the designation of social games attributed to the games in which, every week, millions of Portuguese try their luck. That is, these games are a way to finance projects and social activities.

The list of social games

• Classic Lottery
• People’s Lottery
• Totoball
• Lotto
• euromillions
• scratch card
• scoreboard
• MILLION

From this list of social games, the most certain thing is that you won’t bet on all of them, but the truth is, even if you only play occasionally or spend only symbolic amounts, the simple gesture of registering for Euromillions on Fridays or buying a scratch card at the weekend can be helping many people and institutions.

How is social gaming money distributed?

The law, amended in 2018, sought to make a more balanced and equitable distribution of revenue from social games, expanding the distribution of these amounts to the regional governments of Madeira and the Azores.

In addition, the value is divided by the State, by various ministries and even by Santa Casa itself. Let’s see, then, how the net income from games is shared.

Ministry of Internal Administration

Thus, and in accordance with the law in force, the Ministry of Internal Affairs receives a portion of the revenue, which must be distributed as follows:

• 2.65% for civil protection, emergency and relief, including support for volunteer firefighters associations;
• 0.29% for actions in the field of road accidents and crime prevention (this percentage is also intended to finance initiatives to prevent social risks and support victims);
• 0.66% intended for policing sporting events.

Also according to the law, 2.18% of the net operating results of social games are addressed to the State and this value is independent of that distributed by the Santa Casa to the various ministries.

Presidency of the Council of Ministers

The Presidency of the Council of Ministers receives 3.88% the value of the net results of operating social games, an amount that aims to promote, develop and promote activities, programmes, actions or infrastructures within the scope of culture and gender equality.

Ministry of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security

The Ministry of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security also receives its share, which is distributed as shown below.

• 1.14% of the amount given to this Ministry is intended for the INATEL Foundation, for the provision of social services in the areas of tourism and social and senior thermalism, the organization of free time, culture and popular sports;
• 31.84% it is intended to improve living conditions and accompany the elderly and people with disabilities, as well as initiatives to support children and young people, the family and the community in general.

Funds received are also used to fight domestic violence and gender violenceto support serious situations of need and risk, including those related to the recovery and special education of children with disabilities.

They also help to create or improve equipment and services to combat poverty and social exclusion and to help emerging social risk situations.

This percentage is also intended to support establishments and social solidarity institutions, as well as support measures for Portuguese communities.

Ministry of Health

The Ministry of Health receives 15.70% and this value is intended to help finance the National Health Planin areas ranging from the promotion of healthy eating to oncology or mental health, also including integrated continuous care and palliative care.

Ministry of Education

The Ministry of Education also receives a portion of the income from social games, which is distributed as follows:

• 0.95% intended to support school sports and investments in school sports infrastructure;
• 0.47% serves to support secondary school students with exceptional merit and who lack financial support to continue their studies;
• 8.87% are transferred to the Portuguese Institute of Sports and Youth, so that it promotes and develops sports and youth activities and infrastructure.

Ministry of Culture

The Ministry of Culture collects 2.2% of the value of the net operating results of social games, an amount that must be invested in the Fundo de Fomento Cultural.

Regional Governments of Madeira and Azores

The Regional Government of Madeira receives 2.47% of the value of net income and the Regional Government of the Azores 2.38%.

Santa Casa da Misericórdia in Lisbon

The Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa also gets a good share of the revenue (26.52%), which must be used in the development of integrated projects for their statutory purposes. The values ​​of unclaimed prizes in Euromillions, National Lottery, Placard and M1LHÃO also revert to the institution.

The return to society

According to the latest Report and Accounts of the Gaming Department of Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa, released in 2020, the institution returned 2,673 million euros to society, equivalent to 96.5% of gross gaming sales. This year the Portuguese spent 2,768 million euros in betting on social games.

The amount delivered by Santa Casa concerns not only the distribution of revenues mentioned in the law and which we have already mentioned.

It also includes prizes, fees paid to brokers by bettors, stamp duty, legal deductions on gross sales for the promotion of sport, sponsorships and investment in promoting legality and Responsible Gaming.