Brazil opposition deputy proposes ending regulated fixed-odds betting after 180 days

Caroline De Toni of the Partido Liberal has introduced Bill No. 5,153/2026 in Brazil’s Chamber of Deputies to roll back last year’s fixed-odds betting regulation and ban betting, including sports betting, virtual events, and online games. For PSPs, the interesting part is not the politics; it is the proposed mix of licence wind-down, payment blocking, and criminal exposure for operators and infrastructure providers after the transition period.

1. De Toni’s bill would give existing authorisations just 180 days before they must be terminated. After that, companies would be barred from receiving new bets or deposits and would have another 90 days to pay prizes and fully return balances held in bettors’ accounts.
2. The proposal also goes after the commercial plumbing around betting: advertising, sponsorships, bonuses, loyalty programmes, and paid activity by affiliates and influencers would be prohibited. Any advertising and sponsorship contracts already in force when the law is published could continue for no more than 30 days, with no renewal.
3. Enforcement would not stop at the operator level. The text provides for blocking websites and applications, removing advertisements, and interrupting financial transactions related to betting, including through digital wallets, virtual assets, and service providers located abroad.
4. Anyone who exploits, manages, organises, or economically maintains fixed-odds betting after the transition period could face criminal liability of two to five years’ imprisonment. The bill also sets fines that can reach R$ 2bn (€333m) per infraction and would prevent new authorisations for fixed-odds betting after the law’s publication. Bettors would not necessarily be held responsible.
5. In her justification, De Toni says the goal is to “reverse the legislative option that allowed the dissemination of fixed-odds betting in Brazil” because of what she describes as accumulated economic, social, and health evidence since the market opened. She cites Comsefaz data estimating the average monthly net transfer attributable to betting at R$ 4.7bn (€784.8m) between October 2024 and March 2026, with 2025 total estimated at R$ 62.5bn (€10.1bn).