Brazilian Senate probes betting advertising, calls for tighter rules

The Brazilian Senate has opened a wide‑ranging discussion on the public‑health and consumer impacts of fixed‑odds betting, with a particular focus on the surge in betting advertising during major football broadcasts.

At a joint hearing of the Committees on Social Affairs and Human Rights, speakers described current levels of publicity as abusive and excessive, and urged tighter controls on how betting companies market their products.

Senator Eduardo Girão who chaired the first session, argued that since online betting was regulated “there has been an explosion in advertising from the sector” and warned that “we are seeing a humanitarian tragedy unfolding in Brazil.” He is calling for the repeal of Law 14,790 of 2023, which established the federal framework for fixed‑odds betting.

According to the Brazilian Senate News Agency health officials framed betting as a recognised public‑health issue.

Gabriella de Andrade Boska, from the Ministry of Health’s Department of Mental Health, Alcohol and Other Drugs, said Brazil now treats betting “as a mental‑health problem, a dependency without a substance,” following international practice. She reported that young people are heavily exposed: one in ten is currently betting, more than 25 million people placed bets in 2025, and an estimated 4.4% of bettors show signs of gambling disorder.

Between 2018 and 2025, the number of cases treated in the public health system for betting‑related problems rose by 140%, with data showing sharply higher risks of suicide, indebtedness and domestic violence. In her view, restricting advertising and investing in community‑based care are central to reducing harm.

Regulators and consumer‑protection authorities described how compliance expectations and market realities have shifted. Fabio Macorin, deputy secretary of Prizes and Betting at the Ministry of Finance, explained that operators are now required to monitor bettor behaviour and intervene when they detect a departure from habitual patterns, using warning messages, usage restrictions and, if necessary, account closure supported by technological monitoring systems.

At the same time, the Consumer Protection Foundation of the State of São Paulo’s executive director, Luiz Orsatti Filho, noted that betting turnover has far exceeded earlier projections, reaching more than BRL 350 billion, and described “intense advertising, with influencers very well paid to promote brands and promises of quick gains with easy, round‑the‑clock access.”

A Procon‑SP survey found that over 80% of respondents receive unsolicited betting offers; nearly 40% reported debts caused by betting, and complaint resolution rates have fallen since mid‑2025.

Specialists and civil‑society representatives stressed the speed with which online betting can lead to addiction, especially among adolescents. Researcher Hermano Tavares contrasted slower, venue‑based gambling with “digital bets” available 24/7 via instant payments and retention algorithms, and argued for hard limits on stake size linked to income.