With the approval of Bill (PL) 3,626/2023 by the Chamber of Deputies last Wednesday (13), the regulation of sports betting is getting closer and closer in Brazil.

The text is being processed as a matter of urgency and must be evaluated by the Senate by October 28 to meet the legal deadline of 45 days. If approved without changes, the regulation of betting will now be submitted for presidential sanction and may be approved later this year.

The bill approved by the deputies incorporates some points of Provisional Measure (MP) 1.182/2023, which is the current regulation on the subject. The text contains more detailed requirements and procedures and includes important changes, such as the inclusion of digital casinos in the text.

Bill 3,626 may replace MP 1,182 , which is still awaiting joint approval by the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies before it can become law. The definition of sports betting regulations depends on political forces and is now in the hands of the Senate.

Does the bill replace the provisional measure?

Not yet. Both Bill 3,626 and Provisional Measure 1,182 were authored by the executive branch and were designed by the Ministry of Finance. However, while bills still need to pass through two legislative houses to become law, provisional measures are immediately valid upon presidential approval.

The founding partner of the Jantalia Advogados law firm and specialist in gaming law, Fabiano Jantalia, adds that, in addition to the two texts already mentioned, there is also PL 845, authored by the Senate, which deals with the same topic but is still in the internal committee stage.

“This is a much more political issue than anything else. The provisional measure will only go to the Senate if it is approved by the Chamber, otherwise it will die right there. Bill 3.626 is ahead because it has already been approved in one house, Bill 845 has not yet,” he highlights.

The Ministry of Finance chose to divide the regulation of betting into the Bill and the Provisional Measure. However, as the deadline for the investigation of the Provisional Measure was at the end of September, the Chamber of Deputies decided to combine the content of the two texts in the Bill.

After the approval of Bill 3,626 by the Chamber of Deputies and the deadline for the MP to expire approaching, the National Congress extended the provisional measure for another 60 days. Otherwise, without enough time to approve the bill by the end of this month, the MP would lose its validity and the current legislation on sports betting in Brazil would return to Law No. 13,756 of 2018.

Main changes

The text approved by the Chamber of Deputies is more comprehensive than the provisional measure sanctioned by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in July of this year. The bill is more specific regarding rules and criteria for operating agents and provides more details on issues such as consumer rights and advertising standards.

While the MP limits the legislation to real sporting events, the PL opens it up to online events, which makes it possible to regulate online casinos and other games offered to bookmakers.

“The rapporteur and the parliamentarians concluded that sports betting accounts for only 20 to 30% of these online bets, including casinos and roulette. If the goal is to legalize and bring these companies to Brazil, it makes no sense to limit them.” (Fabiano Jantalia)

Another important point is that the bill requires companies to have a responsible gaming procedure and prevention of pathological gambling disorder, while in the MP this topic was only included as a recommendation to raise awareness on the subject.

The project also brought more detailed rules on offers and placing bets, advertising, means by which bets can be made and payment transactions.

“The project is very concerned with the rights of gamblers, it has a chapter dedicated solely to gamblers, it brings basic rights and foresees the application of the consumer protection code. The operating agent is required to have a customer service center in Portuguese, which is currently one of the main factors that makes it difficult for people to access customer service from companies,” he highlights.

What can we expect?

The regulation of betting in Brazil took an important step last week and now depends on political forces to consolidate itself.

The expert considers that it is difficult to predict how long this process may take – some simple projects drag on for years and other more complex ones are voted on quickly.

“It all depends on the senators’ view of the House bill. It’s hard to predict the timing. What we have to understand is that it has a processing time of 45 days from last Wednesday, and it needs to be analyzed. I believe that within the constitutional deadline, we will either have a solution for the bill or it will block the Senate’s agenda,” he says.