How to promote online betting and gambling in Brazil?

Publication date: 07 Oct 2024

Brazil is one of the most interesting gambling markets in the world today. Currently, there is an intense process of implementing new legislation that allows online operation of both bookmakers and casinos. In an updated review on 3S.INFO, let’s look at all the details and nuances of how to promote online betting and gambling in Brazil.

How is the Brazilian gambling market regulated?

On December 30, 2023, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva signed into law PL3626/23. This law lays the foundation for a federal sports betting market in Brazil.

On June 19, 2024, Law 2234/22 was passed, establishing detailed regulations for casinos, slot machines, bingo, and animal and horse racing.

Additional regulations and decrees are also in effect, with more than 20 issued in 2024 alone.

What types of gambling are allowed in Brazil?

The regulatory body is the Secretariat of Prizes and Stakes (Secretaria de Prêmios e Apostas / SPA). It is under the authority of the Brazilian Ministry of Finance.

The new gambling law in Brazil is scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2025. However, the law has not yet been finalized and is subject to change.  For example, in September 2024, the Minister of Tourism of Brazil supported the legalization of land-based casinos. According to him, it will contribute to the development of tourism and bring an additional $4 billion to the budget.

On October 6, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva stated that “if regulation fails to work, I will not hesitate to put an end to [betting] forever.”

How to get a Brazilian gambling license?

• The license for gambling activities in Brazil can be obtained by companies with registration, headquarters and administration in the country.
• All legal operators must host their websites on the Bet.br domain.
• Foreign bookmakers and casinos will not be able to operate legally in Brazil. It may be necessary for operators to find a local agent to comply with the requirements.
• Operators will be required to have a minimum amount of share capital, be a member of a sports ethics organization and meet various technical requirements.
• The license fee will be 30 million reais (approximately $6.04 million). One license entitles the operator to operate under 3 brands. The license is valid for 3 years.

Acceptance of applications for the Brazilian license ended on August 20, 2024. 114 operators applied for legal work in Brazil.

The list of companies that have applied for a Brazilian license can be found on the SPA website.

How is Brazil fighting the illegal betting and gambling sector?

According to analytics company Yield Sec, by the first half of 2024, 90% of betting and gambling operators in the country will be operating without a license. Approximately 49 million Brazilians play on such sites.

• New regulations are being implemented to combat the “grey” gambling market in Brazil:
• Payments to casinos and betting sites will only be accepted through PIX, a fast payment system operated by the Central Bank. The regulator has the right to request the blocking of all transactions to illegal sites;
• The regulator also has the right to notify a commercial bank that its customer has attempted to make a transfer to an illegal operator. After that, the customer’s account is subject to mandatory blocking. 
• Withdrawals from the gaming account can only be made to a Brazilian bank account;
• The fine for operating without a Brazilian license is 2 billion reais (approximately $354 million);
• Operators who started working without a license and were penalized will not be able to reapply for 10 years.
• Google and Meta* are required to remove ads for illegal betting and gambling.

*Meta is considered extremist in Russia and its services are blocked by court order.

As of October 1, all operators that have not applied for a license will be considered illegal in Brazil.

From October 11, the SPA will have the right to require Internet providers to immediately block access to the sites of illegal operators. Owners of blocked sites will have to return money to their users and close their accounts within 10 days.

How much money does the Brazilian gambling market generate?

According to the new Brazilian gambling law, betting operators will pay a tax of 12% on revenues and 15% on winnings paid to players.

At the moment we can only make predictions about the development of the Brazilian market. All the experts give different figures, but they agree on one thing – tremendous growth is ahead:

• Fhoresp (Federation of Hotels, Restaurants and Bars of the State of São Paulo) estimates that the Brazilian gaming market will be worth $70 billion after launch.
• According to Blask and NEXT.io’s analysis for H1 2024, the expected gross gaming revenue (eGGR) in Brazil was $2.33 billion. This is an increase of 4.1% compared to the same period last year.
• Meanwhile, expected first time deposit (eFTD) was $28.2 million. This is 13% less than a year ago.
• According to a study conducted by the Datahub platform and published in August 2024, the online betting sector in Brazil has grown by more than 430% in the last 2 years.
• Zimpler reports that online gambling revenues will reach $1.97 billion in 2024. From 2024 to 2028, the market is projected to grow at an impressive annual rate of 16.51%, potentially reaching $3.63 billion by 2028. The online casino segment alone will reach $1.11 billion in 2024.

In addition, in August 2024, the Central Bank reported that recipients of the Bolsa Familia (welfare) program spent 3 billion reais ($550 million) on betting.

How can gambling and betting be promoted in Brazil?

In July 2024, Regulatory Decree No. 1231 was published, which, among other things, defines the marketing rules for gambling and betting.  The document obliges operators to “act prudently”.

Online bookmakers in Brazil cannot

• Advertise without a license;
• Offer bonuses, free bets or any other form of incentive to customers;
• Offer any credit products for betting; 
• Target advertising and allow people under the age of 18 to play. All advertising must be labeled 18+;
• Advertise without a message that emphasizes the risks of gambling;
• Allow betting by attendees at sporting events, bookmaker management and regulators.

In September 2024, the president of the National Association of Games and Lotteries (ANJL), Plinio Lemos Jorge, stated that licensed operators must use “transparent advertising”. In particular, advertising should show that “gambling is only for entertainment and not for serious earning”.

How to attract Brazilian players to casinos and betting sites?

The Federal Republic of Brazil is located in South America and is the largest country on the continent in terms of area and population.

There are 212 million people living in the country.

The largest cities are the capital Brasilia, São Paulo (the most populous), Rio de Janeiro, Salvador and Fortaleza.

It is a secular state, but the majority of the population is Catholic.

Portuguese is the main language; English is spoken by no more than 10% of the population.

The official currency is the Brazilian real (about $0.2 as of September 2023).

According to the Times of India (June 2024), Brazil ranks 5th in the world in terms of Internet penetration. Internet users represent about 85% of the population, or about 118 million users.

The country has 3 major mobile operators: Vivo, Claro and TIM.

There is a fairly active audience in the country with 68% of Brazilians betting regularly. That’s over 170 million extreme gamblers who are willing to cut back on food for the sake of betting. According to Hibou, which published data from its August 2024 Player Profile Survey, the most popular bets among Brazilians are 

• Lotteries – 47%;
• Raffles – 25%;
• Sports betting – 11%;
• Bingo – 10%;
• Online casinos – 8%;
• Jogo do Bicho (“animal game”)* – 5%;
• Slots – 1%.

*To learn more about Jogo do Bicho, read on.

Demographic data on who bets and gambles in Brazil was provided by payment system Zimper:

• 80% of men bet on sports (football), only 53% of women do the same
• 49% of women have a greater preference for casino games, while 36% of men do the same.
• Young people between 18 and 24 years old are more active in casinos (53%) and tend to spend more, with 6% betting more than 1000 BRL per month. Players over 55 are less active, with only 24%.

According to a study by the National Confederation of Merchants (CNDL) and Offerwise Pesquisas, more than 40 million people participated in online gambling last year.  The average amount wagered is around $33.

• 22% gamble 2 or 3 times a week;
• 20% play once a week;
• 17% bet or gamble at least once a month.

How do Brazilians choose bookmakers?

According to a survey by the payment system Zimpler, the main argument (multiple answers allowed) when choosing between different sites is

• 48% – Ease of withdrawing winnings. 37% of players have changed betting sites due to lengthy payment processes when placing a bet or cashing out;
• 46% – Ease of use of the platform;
• 37% – betting platform is a well-known and reputable website;
• 33% – compliance with regulatory requirements;
• 27% – variety of betting options beyond sports.

What sports are popular in Brazil?

• The most popular sport for betting in Brazil is football (including futsal, indoor football and beach football). Approximately 75% of the population follows football competitions in one way or another. Zimpler service data (August 2024) shows that 66% of gamblers bet on football, with a preference for national championships. 62% of players prefer them to regional (20%) or international (22%) competitions.
• There is also a lot of betting on basketball and volleyball (and beach volleyball).
• Motorsports and F1 racing are very popular.
• Brazil is the birthplace of the martial arts Capoeira and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Competitions in these sports are therefore traditionally popular.
• It makes sense that there is almost no interest in “winter” sports (hockey, biathlon, ski racing, figure skating) due to the climatic conditions in the country.
• In addition to regular sports betting, sweepstakes are very popular in Brazil.
• Brazil is the third largest esports market in the world. According to Newzoo, there were 76 million gamers in the country in 2018. Game downloads from Google Play and the App Store were in line with global trends, with Fortnite, League of Legends, and Counter-Strike being popular here.
• What is Brazil’s national game of jogo do bicho – the animal game? In 1892, the owner of the Rio de Janeiro Zoo started printing pictures of one of 25 animals on tickets. In the center of the zoo hung a picture covered with a canvas. In the evening, the canvas was removed and everyone could see the “animal of the day. Ticket holders with that animal could expect bonuses. It soon turned out that there were a lot of people who did not want to go to the zoo, but were happy to bet on the animal of the day. Since then, the lottery has changed a lot, but the general principle remains the same.

Which casino games do Brazilians choose?

Top 10 Most Popular Slots in Brazil (June 2024)

What to consider when making creatives for gambling and betting in Brazil?

• Brazilians are very patriotic and love their country. Advertising can successfully use the colors of the national flag and the idea of national unity.
• According to a Google survey, 87% of gamblers in Brazil gamble to distract themselves and relieve stress. Therefore, advertising can emphasize the ease of entertainment, relaxation, rest from work and stress relief.
• Brazilians love a variety of promotions: special offers, bonuses, gifts and the opportunity to save money.
• Due to the low penetration of English, it is necessary to translate all promotional materials into Portuguese. It is important to note that the local dialect is quite different from the “official” Portuguese.
• An important local peculiarity is that the highest temperatures are observed here in the winter months. Therefore, the promotion “Hot Winter” is more appropriate than, for example, “Hot Summer”.

What payment methods are available?

According to data from the National Confederation of Merchants (CNDL) and Offerwise Pesquisas for 2023-2024, the main payment methods for gambling in Brazil are PIX (72%) and credit cards (18%).

However, with the introduction of new legislation, deposit rules are being tightened. Licensed operators are prohibited from accepting cryptocurrency, cash or credit card payments. All betting related transactions must be made by wire transfer only. For more details, see “How is Brazil fighting illegal betting and gambling?” above.

What traffic sources are popular in Brazil?

According to Hibou (August 2024), the most attention-grabbing online gambling ads are:

• Instagram – 33%;
• “Digital influencers (bloggers, celebrity profiles) – 19%.

According to StatCounter data for August 2024, the most popular in Brazil are:

• Social networks: Facebook – 33.1%, Instagram – 26.03%, Pinterest – 20.09%, YouTube – 14.38%, Twitter – 3.58%, Reddit – 0.86%;
• Search engines: Google – 93.61%, Bing – 4.66%, Yahoo!- 1.36%;
• Browsers: Chrome – 76.96%, Safari – 7.77%, Edge – 5.82%, Opera – 3.59%, Samsung Internet – 2.19%, Firefox – 2.16%.

In September 2024, Google permitted online sports betting and gambling advertising for those operators that applied for a Brazilian license. This possibility will be maintained in the future for companies that obtain this license.

In Brazil, mobile (48.4%) and desktop (50.96%) are used almost equally. The most popular devices are Samsung (36.06%), Motorola (18.86%), Apple (17.68%), Xiaomi (16.82%).

Among the operating systems, Windows (45.75%) is the most popular, followed by Android (40.18%) and iOS (8.71%).

The situation in Brazil is the most interesting at the moment. The gambling market is preparing for a new phase and clear regulation. There are many changes and many opportunities, but the main thing is the huge and active audience of those who are used to betting and playing online casinos. The 3SNET network has prepared a list of the best gambling and betting offers, where quality traffic from Brazil is expected. Everything is in your hands, choose, connect and direct traffic!