Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has publicly called for a national ban on online betting platforms, describing the sector’s social impact as “a massive tragedy” for millions of Brazilian families amid a worsening household debt crisis.
“If it is up to me, we close them,” Lula said in an interview with website ICL Noticias on 8 April 2026. “I am deeply worried about the indebtedness of the Brazilian people. If these platforms cause harm, why don’t we end them? We are discussing this very seriously.”
The statement is the most direct intervention from Lula since his administration introduced a full regulatory framework for betting operators in 2025. Annual revenues across the sector are estimated at more than $4 billion. Brazil’s online betting and iGaming market generated BRL 37 billion ($7 billion) in GGR across the first year of legal operation, according to the Secretariat of Prizes and Bets (SPA).
Political and Legislative Context
Lula acknowledged that any move toward a ban would require approval from lawmakers, many of whom have close ties to betting companies. Sports betting was legalised in Brazil in 2018 under a bill signed by President Michel Temer. Lula’s own administration subsequently introduced the regulatory framework that opened the licensed market on 1 January 2025.
The position shift comes as Lula prepares for a presidential election campaign in October. Figures from a Brazilian commerce and services confederation published in March showed more than 80% of the country’s families carry some form of debt, the highest figure since 2010. Market analysts have linked part of that increase to the growth of online betting.
Brazil’s religious groups and social activists have maintained consistent pressure on the government over the sector’s expansion. Betting companies sponsor nearly every club in the top two divisions of Brazilian football. Current and former players including Vinícius Júnior, Ronaldo Nazário, and Roberto Rivellino have served as brand ambassadors for local and international operators.
On the tax front, the Lula administration has been pushing to raise the levy on licensed operators from the current 12% of gross revenue. A Senate committee approved a graduated increase toward 18% by 2028, and the government has since sought to accelerate that timeline. Industry bodies have warned that higher tax rates risk pushing operators and bettors alike toward unlicensed offshore sites that face no compliance obligations in Brazil.
The Operators With Most at Stake
Brazil’s regulated market counts 78 to 80 licensed operators running more than 130 active brands, according to SPA data and market tracking by Blask and brmkt.co. Betano, Bet365, and Sportingbet lead the market by brand recognition, with Esportes da Sorte, Superbet, Betnacional, and 7Games among the next tier.
Several major European-headquartered groups have significant exposure to any regulatory reversal in Brazil.
Kaizen Gaming (Betano) — The Athens-based group holds the market leadership position in Brazil. Betano was identified by H2 Gambling Capital as the leading brand in Brazil’s grey market prior to regulation, and has retained that position through the licensed market’s first year. Kaizen Gaming, which operates under the Betano brand across several European and LatAm markets, is privately held and has not disclosed Brazil-specific revenue figures.
Flutter Entertainment (Betfair / NSX) — Flutter’s Brazil revenue surged 229% in the first year of the regulated market, driven by its acquisition of local operator NSX Group. Its NSX business generated a 383% revenue increase in Q4 alone, to $87 million, though its Betfair Brazil operation posted a 32% decline over the same period. Flutter has set 2026 guidance for its International segment and has earmarked around $70 million in additional investment in Brazil to grow its position.
Entain (Sportingbet / Betboo) — The London-listed group operates in Brazil through Sportingbet and Betboo, both of which received provisional licences at the market launch. Entain has been navigating UK Remote Gaming Duty increases alongside its international expansion commitments, with Brazil representing one of the group’s priority emerging markets.
Betsson AB — The Swedish operator holds a licensed position in Brazil and reported strong LatAm performance through 2025. Betsson’s LatAm revenue reached €84.3 million in Q4 2025, with CEO Pontus Lindwall attributing the growth to continued performance across Latin America. Brazil is part of that regional block alongside Peru, Argentina, and Colombia.
MGM Resorts (BetMGM Brazil) — MGM agreed a deal with Latin American media group Grupo Globo to bring BetMGM Brazil to the regulated market. CEO Bill Hornbuckle has stated a target of 10% market share, with the company launching an in-house sportsbook in December 2025. MGM received a definitive licence at the market’s launch.
Superbet — The Bucharest-headquartered group, which rebranded its parent company as Super Technologies in late 2025, received a definitive licence from the SPA. Superbet has been one of the faster-growing European operators in Central and Eastern Europe and has positioned Brazil as a core international market.
Bet365 — The Stoke-on-Trent-headquartered private group is among the most recognisable international brands in Brazil and received a provisional licence at the market launch. Bet365’s Brazil footprint is part of a broader international strategy, with the company opting not to disclose country-level revenue data.
Beyond European groups, US-based operators including Caesars and Rush Street Interactive hold licensed positions in Brazil, with BetMGM at the most advanced stage of local market investment among American companies.
Industry Warning on Offshore Migration
Betting industry associations have pushed back against both the ban rhetoric and the proposed tax increases on the same grounds: that a more hostile regulatory and fiscal environment would accelerate migration to unlicensed offshore operators rather than reduce gambling activity.
M&A advisory firm Ficom Leisure’s founder Christian Tirabassi has predicted Brazil’s market will be dominated by 10 to 12 top-tier operators, with smaller licensees struggling under the cost of compliance. That consolidation thesis becomes more acute if a higher tax rate or outright ban forces further differentiation between operators with the resources to absorb regulatory costs and those without.
The SPA reported that by the end of 2025, more than 1,600 individuals were flagged for making payments to illegal operators. The regulator closed 550 bank accounts as a result and concluded more than 400 enforcement processes against social media influencers promoting unlicensed brands. Those enforcement numbers suggest a significant illegal market operating alongside the licensed one, even before any policy changes that might incentivise further offshore activity.
What Comes Next
Lula’s comments are a political signal as much as a policy announcement. Any legislative move toward a ban would face substantial resistance in Congress, where betting companies retain strong lobbying influence. The more immediate pressure point is the proposed tax increase: whether the Senate advances a rate above 12%, and on what timeline, will be the clearest indicator of where Brazil’s regulatory trajectory is heading ahead of the October elections.
For European operators that have committed BRL 30 million licence fees and built local infrastructure over the past 18 months, a ban remains a tail risk rather than a base case. But Lula’s public positioning introduces a degree of political uncertainty that was not present when the licensed market launched in January 2025.
The SPA is expected to release updated compliance and revenue data on a quarterly basis through 2026, giving operators and investors a clearer read on market performance ahead of any legislative developments.
Source: Associated Press / ABC News
