Rio Grande do Sul governor Eduardo Leite signed a law restricting when sports betting adverts can run in the state, according to the report. The rules also set advertising-content requirements, with betting companies and media outlets given four months to comply. Abert said it plans to challenge the law in court.
Operators and media outlets in Rio Grande do Sul face new advertising limits and a four-month compliance period.
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Brazil’s Association of Radio and Television (Abratel) asked the Supreme Federal Court on 21 August to join as an amicus curiae in a case challenging Rio Grande do Sul’s restrictions on sports-betting advertising. The state law bars betting advertisements on television, streaming, video-on-demand services and radio from 6am to 9pm; the underlying challenge was brought by the National Association of Games and Lotteries.
Rio Grande do Sul’s law restricting betting advertising is the focus of a constitutional dispute over whether states can regulate the issue. The federal Attorney General’s Office supported suspending the law, arguing that authority over commercial advertising and lotteries belongs to the Union; the state Attorney General’s Office defended its constitutionality. The state said it was preparing rules for enforcement.
Brazil’s Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA-MF) questioned the constitutionality of Rio Grande do Sul’s law restricting betting advertising. Governor Eduardo Leite signed Law No. 16.508/2026, which remains in force unless a court suspends it; the state government said it was enacted by the legislature and signed by the governor. SPA-MF said federal bodies could raise the issue through the appropriate channels.
Rio Grande do Sul’s legislative assembly postponed a vote on bill PL 408/2025 after a lack of quorum prevented it from considering scheduled measures on 31 March. The proposal would restrict advertising by fixed-odds sports betting platforms in the state, including mandatory risk warnings and limits on youth-oriented content. The bill is due to return to the plenary on 7 April alongside other measures.
Loto Potiguar signed its first fixed-odds betting permission contract in Rio Grande do Norte, but it will not take effect until the operator pays a R$2m grant fee. The state has set no launch date, and further technical and administrative checks will follow payment, according to state lottery coordinator Jucielly Lima.