Brazil’s Attorney General Asks Supreme Court to Reject Operator Compensation Claims After Betting Ban

Brazil’s Attorney General Jorge Messias has told the Supreme Court that betting operators are not entitled to compensation after the country’s sudden gambling ban. For licensed PSPs, acquirers, and suppliers, the immediate issue is not just whether the ban survives, but whether Brazil’s licensing regime can be reversed without refunding the money already paid into it.

1. Messias filed a 60-page petition with Justice Luiz Fux on October 5, hours before Brazil’s licensed betting websites were due to shut down. The request asks Fux to dismiss petitions from the National Association of Games and Lotteries (ANJL), the Brazilian Institute for Responsible Gaming (IBJR), and other parties seeking to suspend Provisional Measure No. 1,394/2026.
2. The government’s core argument is straightforward: if the state had the authority to create a gambling product, it also had the authority to abolish it. The AGU says operators entered the Brazilian market knowing their authorizations could be withdrawn, so they did not acquire a permanent right to keep operating.
3. On the money side, the government is refusing to refund the 30 million reais ($6 million) licensing fee for each authorization. It says the fee was not an advance payment that becomes refundable if the regulatory framework changes. A 2024 ordinance also stated that terminating an authorization does not create a right to compensation.
4. That matters because Brazil’s regulated market reportedly has 85 licenses. At 30 million reais per license, the licensing fees alone total 2.55 billion reais ($509 million). For operators and their suppliers, the claim is not limited to permit costs: it also reaches investments, employment contracts, and other commitments made on the assumption that the regulated market would continue.
5. ANJL and IBJR are not the only groups challenging the measure. Broadcasters’ association ABERT, football union SINAFUT, and individual clubs have also filed petitions, with some asking for longer transition periods. Industry representatives warn that if the ban holds, the result could be lengthy litigation over lost profits and other claims.

The jobs angle is not small either. A 2025 ANJL and IBJR study said the regulated gambling sector employed more than 15,000 individuals. Fux has not yet ruled on the injunction requests, and Congress has 120 days to vote on the provisional measure. If the court grants temporary relief, operators get breathing room; if not, the payment stack around Brazil’s betting market will be forced to deal with a shutdown first and a compensation fight second.