Ronaldo Caiado says he would curb betting ads and track gambling money through COAF and Receita Federal in Brazil

Brazilian presidential candidate Ronaldo Caiado said on Tuesday, August 19, that if elected he would move to restrict publicity for bets and sports betting in the country. For PSPs, acquirers, and operators, the important bit is not the politics; it is that Brazil’s betting debate is clearly moving toward tighter ad rules and more financial scrutiny.

1. Caiado, the PSD candidate and former governor of Goiás, said his plan includes “measures” to contain what he called “exhaustive” advertising and to use COAF (Conselho de Controle de Atividades Financeiras, Brazil’s financial intelligence unit, linked to the Central Bank) and the Receita Federal to trace where the sector’s money goes. He made the remarks at an event with presidential candidates organized by representatives of the services sector, as reported by O Globo.
2. He was direct about the mechanics: “It is within my plan the initial measures I will take containing the process of exhaustive advertising, which is leading people to this practice. Then, [we need to] show the damage it has brought to the population and at the same time have a whole COAF and Receita Federal system to know where the money is arriving.”
3. When asked whether he would ban betting outright, Caiado did not answer. That leaves the more immediate policy signal in the narrower but still material bucket: ad restrictions plus financial monitoring, not an explicit prohibition.
4. Brazil’s current rules already require electronic betting ads to carry warnings about the risks of gambling addiction. Sports broadcasts are also barred from encouraging specific bets based on the match score. Caiado is proposing to go beyond that framework.
5. At the same event, Caiado also addressed the departure of campaign strategist Paulo Vasconcelos, saying the move was tied to the professional’s workload. Separately, he said Bolsa Família would remain a state policy, while arguing for measures to push beneficiaries toward leaving the program through better education, lower crime, and action against drug trafficking.