Among some of the biggest controversies of 2024 are... online betting apps and websites – also known as “bets”and its impact on economy. With the recent changes to gambling and betting legislation in Brazil, there have been several questions about these platforms, as well as a lot of confusion.

To understand the current scenario of bets In Brazil, it's also important to understand the past and the legislative and economic history of the game's format – and to try to understand the future and what benefits may come from it.
In this article, we explore the controversy surrounding bets And what can we expect for the future of the format in Brazil?.

Ban on gambling and betting in Brazil

If you were a child of the 1980s and 1990s, you probably have some memory of buying candy or soda at the counter of a neighborhood bakery while, next to you, a slot machine gleamed. Or, perhaps, you lived on a street that had a bingo hall, always packed, on the corner.

The scene changed and disappeared after the President Lula In 2004, the decision to ban gambling in these establishments was the trigger for several back-and-forths that had been occurring in the previous decade, involving the legalization of bingo halls, tax evasion, illegal activities, and more.
The ban was enforced, and it took almost 20 years for the situation to change. In 2018, Michel Temer, then deputy president, legalized fixed-odds betting, sports betting.

Online sports betting, now

There is a key point when considering the landscape of gambling up to 2004 and from 2018 onwards: access to Internet. At the beginning of the century, 201% of the Brazilian population had access to the internet.

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Today, 91.51% of households are able to get online. (Data from IBGE).
This change meant, then, that the place of betting changed. If before it was a slot machine in the bakery, today it's in the palm of your hand and anywhere. Access is enormous, and popularity too. Quickly, gambling games grew and spread. And if in 2018 only fixed odds (the person knows how much they receive if they win) and sports betting took place, today that is not true.

Gambling got out of the government's control. Various types of “"bets"” They began to appear and spread without obeying basic rules – and causing many problems. The main ones are non-payment of taxes, disobedience of legislation, lack of transparency for the bettor, and fraud. This generated a significant economic loss for both... economy as well as for the citizen. (Remember that, in addition to everything else, gambling addiction is considered a disease by the WHO).

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Social impact

It is very important to understand how the unchecked growth of bets It had a social impact on the population. This was, in fact, one of the two main factors that led to the laws being revised and enforcement being tightened at the end of 2024.

O Federal Senate He conducted research and revealed impressive data about the bets In Brazil. First, the volume: 13% of adults gambled online at least once in September 2024. But there is more worrying data, such as:

• 32% is unemployed;
• More than half earn up to two minimum wages;
• Most spent up to R$ 500;
• 42% are indebted;

In short, this shows that the population gambles even when unemployed or in debt, and most fall into the income bracket between social classes D and E. This demonstrates the potential financial impact on the family ecosystem, as the percentage spent gambling is much higher than the percentage of total earnings in these cases.

Furthermore, considering that most of these companies are illegal, there is little or nothing that can be done in cases of fraud or deception. Often, people fail to receive the money they won – but, since the companies are not based in Brazil, they could not even be prosecuted.

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Economic impact

Another factor that worries the government – a great deal – is the impact on economy overall in the country. Since the beginning of the growth of bets Online, there has been a lack of ability to contain the emergence of these sites. This means numerous irregular addresses that do not follow the laws and do not contribute to federal revenue.

Let's consider taxes first. According to the legislation, 15% of the amount collected from bettors is owed to the tax authorities, and 12% of the amount collected by companies should be returned to the government. The collected amount is allocated to:

1. Sports, 36%;
2. Tourism, 28%;
3. Public Security, 12.6%;
4. Social security, 10%;
5. Education, 10%
6. Health 1%.

Furthermore, the company must have its headquarters and legal representation in Brazil, have a representative with experience in betting and lotteries, and comply with cybersecurity laws. There are also limits on advertising, age for bets, amount of money spent, prohibition of practices that lead to deception, among several others.

The problem is: there are several websites that don't follow these rules, are active in Brazil, and don't contribute to revenue. And that's a huge drain. In April 2023, it is estimated that the Treasury failed to collect R$$24 billion from websites that... bets. There is no data for 2024, but that was the most popular year for betting – which likely accounts for a significant increase in that amount.

However, since September 2024, Brazil has been racing against time and illegality to regulate these websites. As a result, the Treasury expects to collect up to R$3.4 billion in taxes by the end of the year.

Changes to the law

The government's idea to contain the wave of illegal betting was to go "all out." Regarding illegal advertising, for example, there were arrests of businesspeople and digital influencers who advertised illegally without declaring their earnings. On another front, a strict blockade and takedown of websites and online pages began to prevent such activities in Brazil.

In total, Fernando Haddad, The Finance Minister requested the takedown of 2,040 illegal gambling websites operating "without any problems" in Brazil. The takedowns began in October 2024, but because there are over 20,000 mobile phone operators in the country, the process is slow and difficult to monitor. Furthermore, the use of VPNs allows access to these sites.

Even so, Haddad He advised people to withdraw any money they have on these sites as soon as possible, as it is impossible to recover it once they are taken offline.

To resume operations in Brazil, the websites of bet They will need to apply for authorization and follow all guidelines. This includes having a legal representative in Brazil, complying with advertising regulations, and paying all necessary taxes.

For now, approximately 10% of the companies that previously operated remain active. The request to take the air of Haddad He managed to bring down most of the companies.
There are no government projections of the absolute number or percentage of companies of bet who must return to Brazil under guidance.