President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will announce on Friday (25), at an event in São Paulo, a provisional measure banning online betting in Brazil. The move comes nine days before the first round of the presidential election, set for October 4. The plan was reported by O Globo and detailed by CNN Brasil and CartaCapital.
According to CNN Brasil, Lula will be in the city to unveil government economic measures, and the ban on betting platforms will be made official at the same event. Advisers expect the provisional measure to end both sports betting and online casinos, such as the jogo do tigrinho, a viral slot-machine game. The text will go to Congress, where lawmakers will decide whether to scale the ban back. Lula met with palace and economic ministers this week to close the package. A provisional measure is a presidential act with the force of law that takes effect immediately.
From limits to a full ban
Lula had weighed a narrower path. CartaCapital reports he considered restricting the measure to online casinos and limiting platform advertising, while keeping sports betting legal. He moved instead to end all bets. On Wednesday (23), at an event with artists at the Fundição Progresso venue in Rio de Janeiro, he said:
"I will have the great pleasure of ending the bets, and the great pleasure of regulating platforms as we did with the Digital ECA."
He also said the decision is not a war, and that Brazil cannot allow gambling addiction, known as ludopathy, to take over the population.
The numbers and the clubs
A study by Comsefaz, the national committee of state finance secretaries, found that Brazilian households lost 62.5 billion reais to betting platforms in 2025, the gap between amounts wagered and prizes paid out. The platforms moved 350.97 billion reais in Pix transfers in the same period. An AtlasIntel/Bloomberg poll released this week shows that 75% of respondents support a ban, while 36% blame Lula himself for spreading the bets.
Brazil's leading football clubs signed a note last week acknowledging the "social impacts, especially on the most vulnerable people" caused by betting companies, while stressing that bets are now one of the sport's main sources of revenue. The government is considering cheaper credit lines and a debt-renegotiation program for the clubs, according to CNN Brasil.
A provisional measure takes effect upon publication but expires after 120 days unless Congress turns it into law. The palace is weighing the strength of the so-called bets caucus in the legislature. The package may also include bills to make companies reimburse the public health system SUS for addiction treatment and to hold platforms liable for the debts of over-indebted gamblers. Lula's campaign expects, according to the Painel column of Folha de S.Paulo, that the decision will catch rival campaigns off guard, especially that of Senator Flávio Bolsonaro.