Starting in 2025, only betting houses registered with the Ministry of Finance will be allowed to operate across the country. Betting was legalized in Brazil in 2018, but without any control – the rules are currently in the process of being implemented.
The measures have been coordinated by the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA), created this year within the Ministry of Finance. Among the ongoing actions is the establishment of agreements with platforms to make unlicensed sites invisible. Talks are already underway with companies such as Google, Meta, and Kwai.
The goal is to establish a formal agreement to enable the targeting of platforms that host advertisements for illegal sites and to request the removal of these ads.
Legal betting houses will receive the domain "bet.br." This will be the primary marker to differentiate legalized businesses, including educational campaigns to encourage players to access these addresses.
The secretariat has also had discussions with Central Bank officials to identify financial transactions from illegal sites. The focus is on sites hosted in other countries, which can currently operate in Brazil without issues, but will no longer be accepted starting in January. A formal agreement on this collaboration will be established by the end of the year.
A method to work with telecom companies is also being studied to ensure the removal of illegal addresses. The secretariat does not rule out legal action but is working to strengthen the understanding that there is authority to request the removal directly from the operators.
"Starting January 1st, we will use all available mechanisms to ensure that only those authorized by the Ministry of Finance can provide services nationwide," said the Secretary of Prizes and Betting, Regis Dudena, to Folha.
The head of the sub-department acknowledges that the task will be difficult, especially as it involves a virtual environment where malicious addresses can be easily disseminated and replicated.
"We don’t have a silver bullet, but we have several measures to make it clear to society that those who want to use a betting house should only seek authorized ones. Only in an authorized house will there be a minimum guarantee of preserving your mental and financial health, and not becoming a victim of fraud."
All the measures being developed, Dudena says, are supported by legislation created by the current government. The offer of sports betting sites has been allowed in Brazil since 2018, after a law was passed during the government of Michel Temer (MDB). Following this, betting advertisements began to dominate open TV, especially during football games, and social networks were flooded with ads, viralized by the actions of famous influencers.
The government of Jair Bolsonaro had four years to regulate the market but did not. As a result, the number of betting houses exploded without clear rules, which was accompanied by reports of match-fixing, fraudulent sites, and misleading advertisements targeted at minors.
"What happened during this period was the development, on the one hand, of a betting service, and on the other, the use of this sector by criminal organizations, whether for fraud or money laundering," said the secretary. "With the growth of unregulated activity, these two types of services became intertwined."
In this proliferation environment, for example, scams related to the Fortun Tiger game can be found. The regulation provides for certification of games in legalized betting houses, which can offer protection against scams that use the visual characteristics of this game.
"In reality, these are fraudulent mechanisms equivalent to a fake e-commerce site, where you click, pay, and never receive anything. So, it has nothing to do with betting, it’s just a scam," says Dudena.
Legalized betting houses will have to ensure compliance with the rules, whether in terms of paying taxes, offering certified games, or preventing the proliferation, for example, of advertising to children.
The Lula government began working on regulation last year, with the initial issuance of a provisional measure. A new law was passed at the end of the year defining the taxation and operation of companies within the framework of so-called fixed-odds games (where it is known how much can be won or lost when betting) and also with the general lines of accreditation.
During the bill's passage in the Chamber of Deputies, lawmakers included online games, such as casinos and other gambling in virtual environments, in this category in addition to sports betting.
The government issued ten ordinances with specific rules for the regulation process. Betting houses interested in operating legally in the country starting in January have until this Tuesday (20th) to register.
The registration will remain open, but only those who register within this timeframe are guaranteed to operate from January, provided they demonstrate compliance with the rules.
By late afternoon on this Tuesday (20), 84 companies had submitted their documents. Since each must pay a fee of R$30 million (US$ 5.5m), this group of companies represents an initial income of R$2.52 billion (US$ 462m) for the government, if all are accepted.
These amounts are expected to be paid by the end of the year. The secretary said that due to the unverified information on market values, future tax revenue projections are still uncertain.
The federal regulation model is being implemented in parallel with the creation of registration processes by the states, in which betting houses are accredited to operate within the territory. The Lula government is negotiating with state governments to also use the "bet.br" domain for houses authorized by the states to simplify the differentiation of legalized ones.
Source: GMB / Folha
