President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has declared a ban on all online sports betting and casino activity, signing a provisional decree just days before the country’s presidential election.
The ban, announced Friday, will take effect immediately and seeks to curb the spread of gambling‑related addiction, which the president has described as a “cancer” that steals families’ income.
Online gambling was made legal in 2018 under the previous administration, but critics argue it grew unchecked, especially without safeguards to protect children and teenagers. Lula said the industry had become “without regulation” under former President Jair Bolsonaro.
The decree comes just over a week before Brazil’s first round of elections, where 80‑year‑old Lula faces Flávio Bolsonaro, son of the former president. Polls show the race almost neck‑and‑neck.
For the ban to remain in effect, Lula will need congressional approval within 120 days. The president also signed a bill tightening penalties for fixed‑odds betting crimes.
Bolsonaro’s campaign has called the crackdown “populist, hypocritical and politically motivated,” while a recent survey found that 59.9% of Brazilian adults favour banning internet betting.
