Brazil vote on land-based gambling bill could happen before July recess
According to local news reports, the bill to legalise land-based gambling in Brazil could be voted on before the Senate’s July recess.
Brazilian newspaper Metrópoles yesterday reported Senate President Davi Alcolumbre has told leaders he will schedule the vote on land-based gambling as a matter of urgency.
The bill, PL 2,234/2022, was approved by the Justice and Citizenship Committee in June 2024. However, the subsequent Senate vote was postponed on numerous occasions.
It seemed unclear when exactly the vote would happen, although Minister of Tourism Celso Sabino believed it would be carried out in H1. The appointment of gambling advocate Alcolumbre as Senate president in February suggested the matter could be prioritised.
There isn’t expected to be any resistance from Brazil’s president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who will give the final approval if the Senate votes in favour of the bill.
Study shows land-based gambling support in Brazil
The launch of the online gambling market in Brazil on 1 January has been blighted by various criticisms about the betting sector. Today licensed digital operators are battling higher tax rates and new gambling ad restrictions as the government seeks to alleviate fears over gambling harm and make up for budget losses elsewhere.
But the public desire for casinos and retail sports betting is clear, as a state-funded DataSenado survey, released in April, indicated there was significant support for this legalisation.
DataSenado, a research institute linked to the Transparency Secretariat of the Federal Senate, found 60% of the adult population in Brazil is in favour of legalising land-based gambling. Just 34% said they were outright against the proposal.
Of those surveyed, 58% agreed the legalisation of land-based gambling would boost tax collection in Brazil. Meanwhile, 44% stated it would increase the number of jobs.
Evangelical opposition remains
Despite this public support, there remains significant opposition from the evangelical sector in Brazil.
Evangelical Parliamentary Front President Gilberto Nascimento told Poder360 his party would not support land-based legalisation.
“I will ask everyone to be against it,” Nascimento said on 13 April. “We will mobilise.
“Everyone is addicted [to gambling], just look at what is happening with [online] betting. Casinos and physical games tend to get worse. Brazil is not a country with a vocation for gambling.”