Lula’s re-election prompts debate over Brazil’s betting ban

The re-election of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva as Brazil's president has reopened discussion of the country's betting rules, including a review of the prohibition on sports betting, according to a column by Magno José, editor of BNLData, published on 25 October. The column argued that the government should resume dialogue with authorised operators and reconsider the ban.

According to the column, the prohibition was adopted without sufficient dialogue with authorised companies or with bodies representing the sector. Magno José also questioned the interruption of a regulatory process that was still recent, under which operators had made investments, paid licence fees and adapted their activities to requirements set by the government.

The column raised the risk that bettors move to unauthorised platforms, arguing that banning the legal offer does not necessarily remove demand for betting. It also examined the legal and political routes available to the sector, including a challenge to the provisional measure before the Supremo Tribunal Federal and its passage through the Congresso Nacional.

Magno José set out the consequences that loss of validity of the authorisations would have for companies, their employees and existing commercial contracts. He also said the new composition of the legislature could influence the debate on the market's future.

The column said the sector should use the moment to present concrete proposals to improve the rules, particularly on advertising, protection of vulnerable people and action against illegal platforms. Its conclusion was that the government still has political room to reconsider the prohibition and return to the path of regulation.