As election campaigning intensifies, the only consensus is that political blocs will have to bargain to kill the Bets regime, reports Leonardo Biazzi of SBC Noticias Brazil 

It appears increasingly more likely that Brazil’s Bets Law will be overhauled by the ongoing political bargaining between the different parties within  Congress, as the future of online gambling in Brazil continues to be a polarising matter for the upcoming General Election.

Just 17 months after it was enacted into law,  too many ministers are now arguing that the Bets Law (No. 14,790/2023), the legislative framework that launched online gambling across Brazil, has become a failed experiment that must be replaced.

In Brasilia, Congress has shown signs of cross-party consensus to repeal the Bets Law, and reinitiate a federal online gambling regime under a tightened system of rules, conduct, marketing and licensing – shifting the landscape of who can participate in the market.

Bets Law has no friends

Though hindsight is always 20/20, the repeal of the Bets Law should have been foreshadowed by stakeholders. 

Brought to life in 2019 by the Presidency of Michel Temer, the Law was rejected on its final sign off by President Jair Bolsonaro and the Liberal Party in 2023.

However, following a year of revisions, the PT government authorised the Bets Law in January 2025. 

Yet the regime has invoked the wrath of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva who views gambling as predatory to PT’s governing agenda and economic assistance programmes for the poor.

Throughout his campaigning for the upcoming election, Lula pledged that he will table a new President’s Bill to ensure that debt is eliminated from Brazilian gambling, and that those on financial assistance are excluded from wagering.

Lula has also committed to showing his hand on gambling reforms. However, the President might be outdone by the bargaining of Congress’ political blocs to settle the matter by 4 October elections. 

Bloc Party

Momentum for the overhaul of Bets became more clear on 19 May, as ministers introduced two separate bills into Congress, both designed to rewrite different parts of the framework.

The two proposals – Bill No. 2,470/2026 and Bill No. 2,478/2026 – were filed in the Chamber of Deputies. Both bills propose radical changes to the regulation of online betting, focusing on strengthening the protection of mental health, consumers, and the family economy. 

The texts also include guidelines for prevention and reduction of gambling-related harms, expanding the regulatory scope of the sector.

The Senate proposal is formed of  ministers from parties spanning Brazil’s ideological divide, including Republicanos, The Workers Party, Liberal Party and Social Democrats. The Chamber initiative similarly drew support from parliamentarians with sharply different political instincts.

In the backdrop of congress remains the  ‘Evangelical Caucus’ that has historically criticised gambling on moral grounds and has become an increasingly influential body in Brazil’s policy making. 

Concerns over household indebtedness, consumer harm and financial vulnerability have expanded beyond traditional political divides, creating fertile ground for legislative alignment. 

Bargain on consensus 

The proposals stop short of outright prohibition. Others do not. 

Pedro Uczai, a federal deputy from PT-SC, has proposed Bill No. 1,808/2026, legislation that would go substantially further by prohibiting betting operations and advertising, while dismantling elements of the current regulatory structure.

Uczai has argued that betting platforms have become “a permanent mechanism for capturing popular income”, intensifying household debt and financial instability.

Senator Eduardo Girão’s Bill No. 1,018/2026 targets betting engagement tools including cashback offers, VIP programmes and gamification features, reflecting growing concern that operators increasingly rely on retention mechanics that encourage excessive play. 

Girão believes that gambling has caused “a scenario of profound social, economic and institutional concern”, requiring stronger state intervention.

Finally, Senator Damares Alves continues to advance proposals seeking a nationwide gambling advertising ban that would significantly reshape sponsorship, media and customer acquisition strategies under Brazil’s betting regime.

Put simply, In an election cycle, bargaining and negotiation will increasingly determine which political bloc succeeds in burying the Bets regime and ending Brazil’s first experience of a federal gambling regime.