Stake will keep fighting in Brazil after a court lifted the injunction that had let it take bets until 25 October. The ban is back in force. Bichara e Motta Advogados is handling the case.
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva barred licensed betting at the end of September. Stake won a preliminary authorisation to operate until 25 October. The next day the president of the Federal Regional Court of the 3rd Region (TRF-3), Luis Antonio Johonsom di Salvo, suspended it at the request of the Attorney General's Office (AGU), which argued the ruling gave Stake an unfair advantage.
Udo Seckelmann, a partner at Bichara e Motta Advogados, said the firm will certainly contest the suspension. Two strategies are being prepared and the choice has not been made. The grounds are not being disclosed. He said the outcome matters for the whole market: a win for Stake in the coming days would give other operators something to use.
The dispute turns on entry costs. The fee was 30m BRL ($6m), with a minimum financial reserve of 5m BRL. International companies opened headquarters in Brazil. Licences ran for five years, and the ban came before the two-year mark. Lawyers call that a blow to legal certainty.
For traffic, offers are down and CPA and revshare are stuck with them. Negative coverage has pressed on the market since 1 January 2025, with betting tied to household debt. Seckelmann argues licensed operators were lumped in with illegal ones, and that the authorities have not shown through research that problem gambling and debt came from the regulated market rather than growth in illegal betting. He called the suspension political, saying the judge leaned towards the state and cited only general principles.
Two industry associations are separately challenging the ban at the Supreme Federal Court (STF) as unconstitutional. A ruling is expected after the second round of elections on 25 October. Stake sought the injunction to hold its position during the dispute. The operation is frozen. The company is ending contracts and laying off staff, and money is lost every day. What is given up now cannot be recovered later. A survey by the National Association of Games and Lotteries found more than 3,500 sector employees lost their jobs after the temporary measure. For affiliates, it is a reason to check contracts and payments.
Based on iGaming Business.
