Brazilian Senator Cleitinho Azevedo has publicly admitted he was wrong to ask influencer Virginia Fonseca for a photo during her appearance before the Senate’s Parliamentary Inquiry Commission (CPI) into betting, describing himself as “an idiot” for the widely criticized moment.
Speaking during a Senate session, the lawmaker said he had reflected on the incident and wanted to publicly acknowledge his mistake.
“It was a mistake. I was an idiot,” he said.
The senator explained that he decided to revisit the episode after meeting a man who told him he had developed a gambling addiction and had nearly lost both his family and his life because of sports betting.
The original incident took place during Virginia’s testimony before the Senate commission in May 2025, when the senator interrupted proceedings to ask the influencer to record a video for his wife and daughter.
The request drew criticism as the hearing was examining the role of digital influencers in promoting betting platforms.
Azevedo said he later sent Virginia an audio message urging her to stop advertising betting operators.
The senator also argued that responsibility extends beyond influencers, blaming Brazil’s political establishment for approving betting regulation in the first place.
His comments come as Virginia has once again found herself under legal scrutiny after Brazil’s Public Prosecutor’s Office in the Federal District filed a civil lawsuit against both the influencer and operator Blaze, seeking at least BR120m ($23m) in collective moral damages over alleged abusive advertising practices.
Azevedo concluded by calling for a united political response to gambling-related harm, arguing that betting should not become a partisan issue.
Brazil’s Senate rejected the final report of the CPI das Bets in June 2025 by four votes to three, bringing the commission to an end without approving its recommendations or proposed indictments
