Brazil’s authorities have taken steps to clamp down on unauthorized online betting under the guidance of the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA), an agency affiliated with the Ministry of Finance. Last year, the SPA identified and blocked 7,599 “Bets,” the term used for online betting operators in Brazil, that were considered irregular until December.
Despite these measures, a survey by UOL revealed that over 80% of these sites continue to redirect users to online betting platforms or mobile applications. Data obtained through the Access to Information Law indicate that at least 83% of the banned sites lead users to online gaming platforms.
The government claims that more than 5,200 sites have been taken down as part of the initiative. This estimate was announced on December 10, coinciding with the signing of a Technical Cooperation Agreement with Anatel, the National Telecommunications Agency. The agreement aims to “speed up and optimize” the blocking of URLs that facilitate irregular betting activities.
However, the current model employed for blocking has not completely eradicated illegal gambling. Plínio Lemos Jorge, president of the National Association of Games and Lotteries (ANJL), commented: “We discussed DNS blocking with Anatel, which targets the root of the site, preventing users from finding these ‘Bets’ on the internet.”
He continued: “When the root is blocked, the site cannot be identified because the URL remains unchanged. This creates difficulties for the illegal site’s owner and highlights the need for bettors to seek a regulated site.”
Redirects remain a persistent challenge for regulators. André Perin, an engineering professor at FEI, noted: “Blocking does not prevent a site from being redirected, but it depends on how the restriction was implemented and the intentions of those trying to circumvent it.
“Mobile applications do not rely on a public interface via URL and may be harder to block than websites accessed directly through a browser,” he added. Such redirection techniques allow irregular operators to maintain access to the betting market even after their primary URLs have been blocked.
In addition to these technical hurdles, some blocked websites display notices warning Brazilian bettors about the irregularity of their services, yet these sites remain active for users intent on bypassing the system. Illegal betting sites frequently mimic the visual identity of legal operators, replicating graphic elements and brand ambassadors, and in some cases, featuring advertisements that appear to be government-validated.
UOL’s investigation involved manually checking all 7,599 sites without the use of a VPN. Sites flagged for unsafe connection alerts, data theft risks, or excessive redirection were deemed inactive, and domains listed for sale were excluded from the count.
Anatel clarified its role by stating: “This monitoring is carried out by the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting of the Ministry of Finance. We recognize the difficulty in completely eliminating this illegal activity, as it involves technical aspects related to website blocking implementation and legal aspects concerning the competence of the involved authorities.”
New regulations took effect in January 2025, with a published list of authorized operators for fixed-odds lottery betting. The SPA confirmed that these operators were selected after verifying compliance with stringent technical and financial requirements.
The list now includes 155 “Bets” from 72 companies, with an additional 13 brands remaining active due to judicial decisions. Under these rules, licensed operators must pay a fee of R$30 million (US$5.25 million) and operate under the “.bet.br” domain. Non-compliance can result in temporary suspension or permanent revocation of licenses.
Original article: https://www.yogonet.com/international/news/2025/02/26/96331-majority-of-unauthorized-online-betting-sites-still-operating-in-brazil-despite-spa-clampdown
