Brazil's Provisional Measure No. 1.394/2026 banning fixed-odds betting and online casinos triggered a sharp rise in illegal sites. Monitoring platform Bet Legal recorded 428 new illegal domains between the announcement and September 27, roughly 143 per day. By comparison, industry association ANJL logged an average of 13.7 new illegal domains daily from June through August.
Four staff at the Secretariat for Prizes and Betting oversee nearly 200 authorised sites and thousands of illegal operators. Of the R$1 million allocated for regulation and oversight in 2026, R$275,600 has been spent. LCA Consultores estimates illegal operators control 38% to 44% of the market, and 77% of 2,291 bettors surveyed had used non-compliant platforms.
The ban removes regulatory safeguards: biometric checks, age restrictions, credit card bans, self-exclusion, deposit limits and daily blocking for Bolsa Família and BPC welfare recipients. Illegal sites do not enforce these measures.
Fiscal impact
The 2027 budget draft projected R$5.3 billion ($1 billion) in revenue from the sector. From January to August 2026, the Federal Revenue Service collected R$9.9 billion ($1.9 billion) from the industry, up 69% in real terms year-on-year. Operators plan to petition the Federal Court, citing revenue loss without budget compensation.
Eighty-five licensed operators paid R$30 million ($5.75 million) each for five-year concessions, totalling R$2.55 billion ($490 million). The government refused refunds. Some 180 industry executives and lawyers are preparing a joint filing with the Supreme Court. The ban also hit football clubs: Flamengo receives R$268.5 million ($51.47 million) per season from Betano, while Superbet notified Fluminense of a possible termination of its R$58 million ($11 million) annual contract.
