ANJL tracks the growth of the illegal betting market and issues a warning to the federal government

A potential ban on online casinos in Brazil could hand control of billions in revenue directly to the illegal betting market. Recent simulations by the National Association of Games and Lotteries (ANJL) indicate that a severe restrictive measure would cause underground operations to surge from the current level of 41% to as much as 82% of the total volume of betting in the country. This move would transfer between R$8.2 billion and R$19.1 billion annually to unregulated operators. What is the risk posed by the growth of the illegal betting market? In addition to the significant impact on tax revenue—with estimated annual losses of up to R$ 7.4 billion to public coffers—the migration of users would directly affect the current support network for the most vulnerable. On authorized platforms, 3 million Bolsa Família and Continuous Cash Benefit (BPC) beneficiaries are barred from gambling. The regulated sector has also recorded over 1.2 million self-exclusion requests from users. The problem is that none of these consumer protection rules exist in the underground sector, which uses advertising to attract young people and debtors. For ANJL president Plínio Lemos Jorge, the government’s actions could have the opposite effect. Warnings have already been issued by accredited entities, economists, authorities, and even a Supreme Court justice. We hope the decisions take technical assessments into account, because the illegal site will not disappear with a provisional measure. “On the contrary, it will be the best environment for these companies to operate,” he stated. Survey reveals numerical disadvantage of legalized companies. The current picture of the sector already points to the overwhelming dominance of unregulated sites in the country. A study organized by the ANJL revealed that there are 355 active clandestine sites for every accredited page. While the legalized industry holds 187 registrations, the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA) has had to block over 66,000 unauthorized domains since the beginning of 2025. Despite all the federal government’s blocking efforts, cross-referencing data with the Federal Court of Accounts (TCU) indicates that nearly 12,000 of these sanctioned addresses remain accessible to players. Oversight efforts struggle to keep pace with the speed at which the technology is evolving, with nearly 14 new illegal sites emerging daily between June and August 2026. The association’s monitoring tracked more than 1,600 cases where an illegal brand that had been taken down simply migrated to a different link and continued operating. Lemos Jorge highlighted the technical difficulty of combating this dynamic of digital fraud solely through takedown orders. The figures indicate that blocking domains, while reducing access to some of the platforms, does not eliminate the illegal offering. In practice, operators can resort to creating new addresses and migrating their brands to other domains. “It is the logic of the underground market and how it operates in Brazil,” he concluded. O post ANJL tracks the growth of the illegal betting market and issues a warning to the federal government apareceu primeiro em iGaming Brazil.