Apostas esportivas (bets) e comportamento financeiro: uma análise qualitativa com apostadores de João Pessoa - PB

Abstract

The accelerated growth of sports betting in Brazil, driven by sector regulation and the expansion of digital platforms, has discursively brought this practice closer to the financial investment universe, through the appropriation of terms such as "bankroll management," "investment," and "extra income." This research aimed to analyze how the perception of sports betting as an investment option affects the financial behavior of Brazilians, particularly regarding risk- taking disposition and the occurrence of financial losses. An applied, descriptive, bibliographic and field research was conducted, with a qualitative approach, grounded in Kahneman and Tversky's Prospect Theory and Bardin's (2016) Content Analysis technique. Semi-structured interviews were carried out in June 2026 with ten adult bettors residing in João Pessoa, Paraíba, Brazil. Results revealed a significant contrast between participants' familiarity with sports betting mechanisms and their knowledge of formal financial investments: only two of the ten interviewees reported consolidated experience with investment products, while eight reported episodes of loss-chasing behavior, often compromising resources allocated to essential expenses. It was also found that, although half of the participants theoretically recognize the distinction between betting and investing, this awareness frequently fails to translate into behavioral coherence, a phenomenon explained by loss aversion and the illusion of control, biases widely documented in Behavioral Finance. It is concluded that the discursive mimicry between betting and investing, combined with intense exposure to digital platform advertising, weakens individuals' risk perception and contributes to the normalization of recurring financial losses, reinforcing the need for public Financial Education policies and stricter regulation of gambling advertising in Brazil.