Flutter Brazil is shutting Betfair in the country and keeping Betnacional as its single brand. The company confirmed the move to NEXT.io, saying the decision followed a review of its commercial strategy and that resources and expertise now go to the local brand. The layoffs cut across several parts of the business.
The trigger is provisional measure (MP) 1.394/2026, signed by President Lula on 25 September. It bans fixed-odds and online casino betting across Brazil, including for offshore operators. Betnacional and Betfair Brazil stopped taking bets and deposits the following day, and licensed platforms went offline on 6 October. Flutter puts the cost at around $70m in revenue and $20m in adjusted EBITDA for the year if it cannot operate through the end of 2026. The exit may not be permanent: congress has 120 days to approve the MP. If deputies reject it, Flutter expects to resume operations.
Staff at Betnacional and Betfair Brazil began posting about job losses on social media before the company confirmed anything. The LinkedIn posts are dated 22 October and cover casino, customer operations, content and commercial teams. One employee called the layoffs 'long-awaited'; another tied the exit to 'the MP effect'. Industry associations ANJL and IBJR have challenged the measure at the Supreme Federal Court. ANJL counts more than 3,500 job losses in the sector since the MP was published.
Context
A week earlier Flutter confirmed a restructuring of its UK & Ireland division, with up to 1,400 roles at risk. Leeds, Dublin and hubs in Malta, Portugal and Romania are affected. The next day came news that the Malta operation of Sky Bet is closing, less than 12 months after the commercial headquarters moved there. These are the first major steps taken by new group CEO Dan Taylor, who replaced Peter Jackson at the start of October. Taylor previously ran Flutter International, which includes Flutter Brazil. Flutter shares on the NYSE have lost around 69% over the year.
Flutter's Brazilian business grew out of the purchase of NSX Group, the owner of Betnacional. About $350m in cash bought a 56% controlling stake, with put/call options allowing the holding to increase in the fifth and tenth years. Eduardo Monte is CEO and João Studart is chairman. The headquarters is in Recife, with an office in São Paulo on Faria Lima and an operational base in Marechal Cândido Rondon, Paraná. In June, Monte told Poder360 that the technology side had grown almost threefold. In the second quarter of 2026 Brazil brought Flutter $72m in revenue. Football partners include Sport Recife and Cruzeiro through Betnacional, and Vasco through Betfair. For the market it is a reason to recalculate the bet on the Brazilian GEO: the local brand stays, but the horizon depends on the vote on the MP.
