Brazil’s Betting Ban Pushes the Market Underground, IBIA Says

The International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) has released an evidence-based analysis of what Brazil stands to lose if the ban on fixed-odds betting and online games becomes permanent. For high-risk payment providers, the point is simple: when regulated channels are shut, betting activity does not disappear — it moves outside supervision, where fraud, chargebacks, and integrity controls get harder to manage.

1. On 25 September, Brazil imposed a nationwide ban on fixed-odds betting, including sports betting and online games, just 21 months after opening its regulated betting market. The measure is now being implemented while Congress decides whether to make it permanent.
2. IBIA says the country’s regulatory framework, licensing rules, and consumer-protection ordinances have been in place for less than two years. In its view, the ban threatens to unwind that progress by pushing betting activity beyond regulatory oversight and weakening the systems used to detect and prevent match-fixing.
3. The association is asking Congress to reconsider Provisional Measure No. 1.394/2026 through an evidence-based review of its risks and impacts, backed by open dialogue with the industry. IBIA also says public authorities, sports bodies, and independent integrity monitors should keep working together, while enforcement focuses on blocking unlicensed offshore operators.
4. Brazil’s regulated market had already authorized more than 80 operators. According to IBIA, the country also introduced customer identification requirements, targeted illegal betting sites and payment channels, and created a centralized self-exclusion system.
5. For licensed operators, the rules required monitoring for suspicious betting, reporting concerns, and integration with national or international sports integrity monitoring organizations. That is the operational layer a PSP can actually underwrite; once activity migrates to offshore venues, that layer is the first thing to go.