Brazilian presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro said on 25 September that he would prohibit online betting if elected. He said the ban would cover online casinos and the “jogo do tigrinho”, but exempt football betting, which he said had been permitted for decades.
Bolsonaro’s stated plan would prohibit online casinos while exempting football betting, creating distinct risks across product lines.
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Senator Flávio Bolsonaro criticised on 25 September a provisional measure announced by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s government to prohibit betting in Brazil. Bolsonaro said the measure lasts four months and could lapse without congressional approval, allowing betting companies to resume operations. He also alleged that the government had collected more than R$20 billion from the sector since regulating it.
Alfredo Gaspar, running as Flávio Bolsonaro’s vice-presidential candidate, said on 18 August that the campaign was considering tighter restrictions or a complete ban on online betting in Brazil. Gaspar said no proposal had been finalised and cited an estimated R$62 billion taken from Brazilian families, a figure he attributed to betting.
Brazilian federal police are investigating whether senator Flávio Bolsonaro held an undisclosed interest in online betting site BestBet, which had a licence from Rio de Janeiro state lottery Loterj. Bolsonaro denies an illicit business relationship; Willer Tomaz also disputes the reporting and says his companies operate lawfully.
Federal police in Brazil are looking into whether the senator concealed a stake in BestBet, a betting platform that had earlier been licensed by Loterj, the Rio de Janeiro state lottery, as the source account reports. The senator rejects claims that he shared a joint account with lawyer Willer Tomaz or that the two had an illicit business relationship. Tomaz likewise contests the reporting, insisting his companies operate lawfully.
Brazil’s betting sector reportedly believed Flávio Bolsonaro would win the election and was already negotiating with his interlocutors to revise Provisional Measure 1,394.
In a TV Globo debate on 23 October, President Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro each blamed the other for the rise of online casinos. Fact-checkers Lupa and Fato ou Fake rated both claims false, noting that online games were legalised by Law 14.790/2023, which Lula signed.
President Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro each attributed the origin of online casinos to the other during the final second-round presidential debate on TV Globo on the night of Friday 23 October. The exchange took place in the third block of the debate. Fact-checking agencies Lupa and Fato ou Fake rated the statements false.