Tiago Bessa was interviewed by TVI in a report entitled "Online Gambling: Only 17 sites are legal", which indicates that there has been an exponential increase in the number of online gambling users in Portugal, most of whom use illegal sites.

According to this report, in Portugal there are only 17 platforms that have a licence to operate, and it is estimated that around 70% of users are unaware that they are winning and losing money through illegal sites.

In this context, Tiago Bessa explains that "to operate legally in Portugal it is necessary to have a licence. Therefore, companies that don’t obtain this licence are basically exploiting online gambling illegally. The law, precisely because online gambling is a very sensitive issue, stipulates that such unauthorised exploitation constitutes a crime punishable by up to five years in prison".

The increase in the number of users is partly explained by the advertising that digital content creators give to these platforms, contributing to the normalisation of their use. For this reason, criminal complaints have already been filled against influencers who publicise these sites. Tiago Bessa adds that "the Public Prosecutor's Office is in charge of the investigation phase, so it is up to them to determine the deadlines that must be met. We will have to wait to see what the results will be of these complaints that have been filled, either by the Portuguese Association of Betting and Online Games (APAJO), or also by the regulator itself".

• This report is available here (starting at minute 01:19:38).