Lula says Brazil’s Congress is unlikely to overturn MP banning bets, as 120-day clock starts

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said on Thursday, October 1, that Congress is unlikely to reverse the provisional measure banning bets in Brazil. For PSPs and acquirers watching high-risk flows, the important part is not the quote; it is that the ban is now tied to a 120-day legislative window and can still be turned into permanent law only if Congress approves it.

1. Lula said in an interview on the Flow Podcast that he doubts Congress will “have the courage” to end the measure, adding: “Even some who are partners of tigrinho.” He called it “a good fight.”
2. According to Folha de S.Paulo, Lula signed the provisional measure on Friday, September 25, nine days before the first round of the presidential election. Because it is a medida provisória, the prohibition is valid for 120 days and must be approved by Congress to become permanent law.
3. Lula said he decided to prohibit online gambling after speaking with people who developed gambling addiction and fell into debt using the platforms. He admitted he had not understood the scale of the problem before those conversations.
4. He also linked the timing to the election, saying: “If I don’t stop it and I don’t win the election, I was never going to stop it.”
5. Lula acknowledged that the measure is not a final fix: “Every time you regulate, another illegal one appears,” he said, referring to bets operating outside the legal framework.