Brazil

Fixed-odds sports betting is now banned in Brazil. Provisional Measure 1.394 of 25 September 2026 ordered the regulated market shut down pending review by Congress, less than two years after it launched on 1 January 2025 under Law 14.790/2023. The market was administered by the Secretaria de Prêmios e Apostas (SPA), a federal body within the Ministry of Finance, which licensed operators that met capital, integrity and KYC requirements (identity verified via CPF) and paid a 13% GGR tax, raised from 12% in January 2026 and set to reach 15% by 2028. The minimum age is 18. Horse racing betting is a separate, established legal vertical regulated by the Ministry of Agriculture (MAPA), not the SPA, with pari-mutuel betting offered through authorised Jockey Clubs. Prediction markets are effectively banned: CMN Resolution 5.298 of April 2026 excludes event-based contracts from permissible derivatives.

Before the regulated market, Brazilian sports fans could only bet online with unlicensed offshore operators that weren’t bound by local rules. The 2023 law brought in rules to govern operators, protect consumers and raise tax revenue, so fans could use legal Brazilian betting sites under government oversight. Under Provisional Measure 1.394, licensed sites had to stop taking deposits and go offline while Congress weighs the ban.

Are There Any Legal Betting Sites in Brazil?

No. Provisional Measure 1.394 prohibits the exploitation, offering, intermediation and advertising of fixed-odds betting across Brazil. It applies to operators authorised at federal level and to state and district-level betting concessions, so no licensed Brazilian sports betting site may operate. Licensed sites were scheduled to go offline from 6 October 2026.

Until then, licensed sites offered professional, amateur and esports markets under government licences and had to follow extensive rules covering everything from responsible gambling to technical standards. Under the regime that ran from 1 January 2025, bettors had to be 18 or older, operators could apply for federal licences for online or land-based sportsbooks, licensees could take bets on professional, amateur and esports events as long as a league’s athletes weren’t exclusively minors, and sportsbooks had to give customers at least 90 days to claim winnings.

Can You Still Bet With 22Bet in Brazil?

• Read more: 22Bet Review

No. 22Bet was active in the Brazilian sports betting market for several years, but the Provisional Measure 1.394 ban means it can no longer take bets from Brazilian customers.

Can You Still Bet With bet365 in Brazil?

• Read more: Bet365 Review

No. Bet365 was among the most used online sportsbooks in Brazil before the shutdown, with a long track record (founded in 2000), Brazilian real deposits and a Portuguese-language site. Provisional Measure 1.394 closed it to Brazilian customers along with the rest of the licensed market. Its Brazilian deposit options centred on Pix, instant bank transfers and debit cards, because Brazilian rules barred postpaid methods.

Can You Still Deposit or Withdraw at Brazilian Betting Sites?

No deposits are possible. Operators had to stop accepting deposits when Provisional Measure 1.394 was published, and there is no licensed Brazilian sportsbook left to sign up with. Players had until 11:59 p.m. on 5 October 2026 to withdraw remaining balances. After that, operators must report balances to financial institutions so the money can be returned to players.

Before the shutdown, the most popular deposit methods were Pix instant payments, instant bank transfers and Visa or Mastercard debit cards, along with prepaid cards. Credit cards, cash-based vouchers and other postpaid methods had been barred since January 2025.

Where Does the Ban Stand in Congress?

A provisional measure takes effect immediately but lapses unless Congress converts it into law. MP 1.394 has been in force since 25 September 2026. Its first 60-day deliberation period runs to 23 November 2026 and can be extended once by a further 60 days. Since 9 November it has been under the urgency regime, which puts it at the front of the congressional agenda. As of 10 November, 99 amendments had been filed and the joint committee that reviews it had not yet been installed.

The ban is also being challenged in court. On 8 November the Supreme Federal Court (STF) suspended lower-court cases contesting the measure until it rules on the constitutional challenges before it. That decision pauses the cases, not the ban, which stays in force.

Brazil Sports Betting Laws

Law No. 13,756 of 2018 authorised sports betting in Brazil, and Provisional Measure 1,182 and its successor, Law No. 14,790 of 2023, set out the detailed rules for licensed operators. Law No. 14,790 is now largely revoked: the official text carries the annotation “(Revogado pela Medida Provisória nº 1.394, de 2026)” against its provisions.

The Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA) regulated online sportsbooks, issued licences and monitored licensees for compliance until the ban. Foreign operators could apply for licences alongside domestic ones, as long as they had the financial means to run a sportsbook, passed criminal background checks and had the technical expertise to manage it properly. No new applications are possible while Provisional Measure 1.394 is in force, and the measure must pass through Congress to stay in effect.

What Were the Advertising Rules?

Provisional Measure 1.394 now bans advertising of fixed-odds betting outright. Under the regime suspended in September 2026, betting sites had to promote responsible gambling in their ads and couldn’t buy sports broadcasting rights.

Ads also couldn’t present betting as a way to solve personal problems, an alternative to a job or a route to financial security. Operators couldn’t target minors or suggest that fans could win consistently through skill, and they had to follow the standards of the National Council for Advertising Self-Regulation (CONAR).

What Were the Integrity and Consumer Protection Rules?

Every licensed site had to hold contracts with integrity monitoring bodies to detect and investigate suspicious betting patterns that could point to fraud, collusion or corruption. That duty fell away when Provisional Measure 1.394 terminated the authorisations.

Law No. 14,790 also barred specific groups from betting: anyone under 18, federal employees involved in regulating betting, owners, administrators and employees of licensees, anyone with significant influence over a licensee or access to its systems, coaches, athletes, referees and officials able to influence results, Brazilians on national credit protection registries, and any further category set by the Ministry of Finance. Those provisions were among the ones the measure revoked, and fixed-odds betting is now prohibited for everyone.

What Taxes and Licence Fees Applied?

Taxes and licence fees weighed heavily on operators and bettors, and some lawmakers had promised to cut the rates. These applied until the September 2026 suspension:

• Operators paid a 13% tax on gross gaming revenue in 2026 (up from 12%, and scheduled to reach 15% by 2028)
• Licences cost up to R$30 million and covered as many as three brands
• Customers paid 15% income tax on net winnings

Under 2023’s Provisional Measure 1,182, an 18% levy on operator revenue was split as follows:

• 10% to support social security
• 3% to the Ministry of Sports
• 2.55% to the National Public Security Fund
• 1.63% to the clubs and athletes operators offer bets on
• 0.82% to basic education in Brazil

How Did Brazil Legalise Sports Betting?

Slowly. The process began in 2018, when lawmakers approved a law authorising retail and online sports betting and gave the government two years to adopt the regulations. That took longer than planned. After granting itself an extension, the Secretariat of Evaluation, Planning, Energy and Lottery (SECAP) published the rules for licensed operators in 2022.

The government of the day had until December 2022 to sign off on those rules but didn’t. The next administration sped things up and signed Provisional Measure 1,182 in July 2023, which put legal sports betting into effect.

Can You Bet on Horse Racing in Brazil?

Yes. Brazil legalised pari-mutuel horse racing betting in 1984 and has a thriving racing industry. Four major tracks host live racing, and Hipódromo da Gávea stages the most prestigious races, including the Brazilian Triple Crown.

Brazil actually has several Triple Crown series of three races each. The two most prominent run every year in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo:

Rio de Janeiro Triple Crown

1. Grande Prêmio Estado Do Rio De Janeiro
2. Grande Prêmio Francisco Eduardo de Paula Machado
3. Grande Prêmio Cruzeiro do Sul

São Paulo Triple Crown

1. Grande Prêmio Ipiranga
2. Grande Prêmio Jockey Club de São Paulo
3. Grande Prêmio Derby Paulista

Each track’s official website has results and visitor information:

• Hipódromo da Gávea in Rio de Janeiro
• Cidade Jardim Racetrack in São Paulo
• Hipodromo do Cristal in Porto Alegre
• Hipódromo do Tarumã in Curitiba

Fans can also bet at legal horse racing betting sites and countless off-track betting facilities (OTBs) on races in Brazil and abroad. The fixed-odds sportsbooks that carried daily racing markets, including bet365 with its international racing, are covered by the Provisional Measure 1.394 ban and are offline. Horse racing remains a separately regulated vertical, so two local jockey clubs still run online racing platforms. Their coverage is somewhat limited, but they have the deepest coverage of the local circuit.

You can bet on horse races online today at:

• Brazilian Jockey Club Online Betting Platform
• São Paulo Jockey Club Online Betting Platform