Brazilian President Lula da Silva to announce measures to restrict betting

The Ministry of Finance is working on finalising what will be announced - with the help of the Ministries of Health and Social Development on some topics.

There are plans to veto the use of credit cards and Bolsa Família cards to pay for bets, as well as the obligation to display so-called responsible advertising in betting commercials, which includes not allowing, for example, advertising campaigns suggesting that the punter can become a millionaire with these bets.

Lula isn't likely to announce these measures next week by chance. The reason is that as of Tuesday 1st October, only the 113 betting companies that have applied for authorisation to operate in Brazil will be able to continue operating. In around 30 days, the government will analyse the applications. Those that pass the sieve will have to pay R$30 million to continue on the market.

The other 500 or so betting companies that the government estimates exist will have to cease their activities as of next Tuesday.

Studies show Brazilians spend usd 3.700 billion monthly on platforms, highlighting the need for regulation

Brazilians' spending on online betting and gambling is worrying the government, business and financial sectors, but the entry into force of new rules to regulate the activity, which will come into force next month, will help to sanitise and control this market, according to experts and representatives of the sector.

The day before yesterday, a survey by the Central Bank (BC) showed that, via Pix alone, Brazilians have transferred around R$20 billion a month to online betting and casino platforms this year, the first official figure to measure the growth of this market in the country.

Lula says online gambling will need regulation: ‘If not, we'll have casinos in our kitchens’
Online gambling has grown unchecked in the country since it was legalised in 2018, but only now has it been regulated. The entry into force of the rules will allow the government to control licensed sites and take down irregular ones, according to professionals who know the sector and the experience of other countries.

The president of the National Association of Games and Lotteries (ANJL), Plínio Lemos, estimates that there are currently more than a thousand illegal betting sites operating in Brazil. In the face of growing concern about the risk of addiction and indebtedness among families, the government decided to bring forward, from January 2025 to 11 October, the blocking of sites that have not yet applied for the licences required by the regulation upon payment of fees.

According to the Ministry of Finance, 113 companies had applied by August.

“When we say illegal site, we're talking about a site with no responsibility. It opens today, starts taking deposits, people start betting and, when there's too much money in the site's till, it simply closes down the operation”, says Lemos.