Industry welcomes new betting advertising rules, but raises concerns
New rules governing fixed odds betting advertising came into force on Friday, 17 July, marking a new phase in the regulation of Brazil’s betting market. Published by the Ministry of Finance last week, the measures increase requirements for marketing campaigns run by authorised operators, make responsible gambling warnings mandatory in all advertisements and tighten restrictions on the promotion of the sector.
Among the main changes are the prohibition of messages presenting betting as an investment or a solution to financial problems, the ban on calls encouraging impulsive betting and the mandatory inclusion of warnings such as “The Ministry of Finance warns: betting makes you lose money” in all advertising materials.
In addition to these restrictions, the new rules require all advertisements to display standardised warnings issued by the Ministry of Finance in a clear and proportionate manner according to the campaign format. Messages linking betting to personal or professional success, encouraging the recovery of losses or creating a sense of urgency through expressions such as “bet now” or “last chance” are also prohibited. The regulation further restricts the publication of winning bets and prevents sports commentators, analysts and presenters from encouraging betting during sports broadcasts.
The rules also expand responsibility across the entire betting advertising chain, including operators, agencies, affiliates, influencers, media outlets and digital platforms. This means compliance is no longer solely the responsibility of licensed operators. Influencers, affiliates, advertising agencies, digital platforms and media organisations must verify whether advertisers are authorised to operate in Brazil and whether the promoted brand and domain appear on the official lists maintained by the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA). The objective is to make it more difficult to promote illegal operators and strengthen consumer channelisation towards the regulated market.
ABRAJOGO supports progress, but calls for clearer criteria
In a statement released on Friday, the Brazilian Association of International Gaming Operators and Providers (ABRAJOGO) said the new rules represent progress for consumer protection, responsible gambling and the fight against illegal platforms. The association also highlighted that responsible advertising helps consumers identify authorised operators and distinguish licensed companies from illegal websites that do not have authorisation from the Ministry of Finance to operate in Brazil.
However, the association believes some provisions of the regulation still require greater clarity. One of the main concerns relates to the prohibition of calls to action. According to ABRAJOGO, the current wording could lead to overly broad interpretations and affect neutral expressions such as “learn more”, “discover the platform” or “check the rules”, which do not pressure consumers to place bets. In the association’s view, the restriction should focus only on messages encouraging impulsive betting or the recovery of losses.
The association also argues that the regulation should distinguish advertising from journalistic content, sports analysis and opinion. According to ABRAJOGO, the mere placement of a news report alongside an advertisement should not be sufficient to classify content as irregular advertising. Identification should instead consider factors such as commercial relationships, promotional codes, affiliate links or the commercial purpose of the content.
Another issue raised concerns the prohibition on publicising winning bets. According to ABRAJOGO, the problem lies in using these cases to suggest easy or repeated winnings, rather than the objective reporting of facts that are in the public interest, as traditionally occurs with official lottery results.
Market calls for stricter enforcement against illegal operators
The success of the new rules will depend on stronger enforcement against unauthorised platforms. According to the association’s statement, digital platforms will be required to maintain ongoing operator verification processes, monitor domain changes, track advertising campaigns and quickly suspend the monetisation or commercial distribution of content promoting illegal companies once irregularities are identified.
According to ABRAJOGO president Witoldo Hendrich, responsibility should be proportionate to the role played by each participant in the advertising chain.
“Responsibility must reflect the level of participation and control exercised by each party in the chain. Those who commission, promote or monetise advertising should verify in advance who is being promoted, while providers hosting third-party content must act quickly when irregularities are identified.”
The association also expressed support for the creation of the working group established by the National Consumer Secretariat (Senacon), which is responsible for developing a national programme to oversee the betting market. According to ABRAJOGO, the initiative could strengthen consumer protection, provided it also includes iGaming specialists and representatives of authorised operators to contribute technical expertise to the development of the measures.
This article was first published on the Portuguese SiGMA News page on 17 July 2026.
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