Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said he would decide the future of sports betting after reviewing consultations with civil society, in an interview broadcast on 10 September. He said he would not disclose his decision in advance and reported hearing about 10 or 11 people during the consultation round.
Operators and regulators await the president’s decision on the future of sports betting in Brazil.
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Brazilian Finance Minister Dario Durigan said on 5 November that suspending betting would reduce projected Selective Tax revenue and require an adjustment to 2027 budget planning. The government collected R$15.3bn in sector taxes between January 2025 and September 2026, according to figures presented by the Federal Revenue Service. Congress must review the provisional measure within 120 days, with the deadline extending to 5 March 2027; otherwise, the measure will expire.
Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva decided on 25 September to ban sports betting and online gaming, and this will reduce projected Selective Tax revenue next year. Finance Minister Dario Durigan announced this at a press conference on Thursday.
Brazil’s Ministry of Justice and Public Security classified documents underlying Provisional Measure 1,394/2026 as secret for five years. The measure prohibits online betting activity and advertising in Brazil; the ministry cited risks to public safety and financial stability, while the presidential chief of staff separately invoked lawyer-client confidentiality to deny access. Betting-industry executive Fellipe Fraga expressed concern about the secrecy.
Brazil's Ministry of Justice and Public Security classified as secret for five years the documents underpinning Provisional Measure 1,394/2026, which prohibited the operation, offering, intermediation and advertising of online betting in Brazil. The classification term was signed on 24 September, a day before the measure was issued. A request for access to the material under the Access to Information Law was refused because of the secrecy, according to the report.
Brazil's Superior Electoral Court admitted a case brought by the Novo party alleging political and economic abuse by the Lula-Alckmin presidential ticket in the 2026 election. The case cites Provisional Measure 1.394/2026, which banned fixed-odds betting platforms, but the decision only opens proceedings and does not rule on the allegations; the case will proceed to the court's plenary after evidence is considered and the electoral prosecutor responds.
Brazil's Superior Electoral Court (TSE) has admitted a case brought by the Novo party, which accuses the ticket of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Geraldo Alckmin of abuse of political and economic power in the 2026 presidential elections. The decision was taken by Ricardo Villas Bôas Cueva, the electoral justice inspector-general and a minister. It only opens the proceedings and does not rule on the merits of the request.
Brazil’s Supreme Court held a public hearing on the future of President Lula da Silva’s provisional measure to close the online gambling and sports betting market; no decision had been made. Justice and health ministers and the attorney general defended the measure, while football representatives described financial risks, including Flamengo’s reported 430 million reais in annual revenue at stake.
No ruling has yet been issued on whether betting will be prohibited in Brazil, the country's Supreme Court having overseen a public consultation that ran beyond ten hours. During that session, Justice Luiz Fux took testimony from public bodies, industry associations and football clubs, who set out their positions on the effects of President Lula da Silva's provisional measure. That measure was designed to shut down Brazil's online gaming and sports betting market roughly two years after it had begun operating.
Brazil’s Planning Ministry, Federal Revenue study centre and Civil Office reportedly disclosed that they had no impact study or estimate on the betting prohibition. The responses covered assessments of the policy and, in the Revenue centre’s case, documents produced after the measure was published.
Brazil's Planning Ministry, the Federal Revenue's tax and customs studies centre (CETAD) and the Civil Office of the Presidency did not present any study, technical note or impact estimate of the betting prohibition, according to the report. Their responses came to freedom-of-information requests that were filed on 20 September.