Brazil’s Federal Supreme Court (STF) has once again postponed a decision on whether the country’s decades-old ban on gambling is compatible with the 1988 Constitution.
Edson Fachin, Chief Justice of the STF, removed Extraordinary Appeal No. 966,177 from the April docket just days before it was due to be heard.
While the official explanation cited workload, analysts point to broader institutional considerations, as the STF faces heightened scrutiny and political pressure. Bringing a divisive issue such as gambling to a vote could further expose the Court to criticism, and President Lula's publicly stated criticism of sports betting and online gaming is also seen as a factor in the timing.
The prohibition on land-based gambling dates back to 1941, when Article 50 of the Criminal Offences Act criminalized games of chance in public places, with penalties of three to twelve months in prison. The ban was reinforced by presidential decree in 1946.
The case originated in Rio Grande do Sul, where a lower court ruled that the 1941 law was not incorporated into the 1988 Constitution, a position later challenged by prosecutors, bringing the matter before the STF.
The delay highlights Brazil’s regulatory split: online gambling is now legal, while land-based gambling remains criminalized.
Meanwhile, a legislative path also exists: a bill has already passed the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate Committee on Constitution and Justice, and awaits only a decision by the House's leadership to put the matter on the plenary agenda. If the STF rules in favor of decriminalization, the Government would still need to regulate the land-based sector through either that bill or new legislation.
Legal analysts expect the Court to rule that criminalization lacks a constitutional basis. Such a decision would decriminalize, but not regulate, land-based gambling, leaving Congress to establish a formal framework.
Luiz Fux, the reporting justice in the case, said the matter is “eminently constitutional,” citing principles of free enterprise and fundamental freedoms.
The STF has not set a new hearing date.
Editor's comment, by Tim Poole
It is no surprise Brazil is not prioritizing the re-opening of legal land-based gambling – given the political furore currently surrounding Brazil's online gaming regulation.
In case anyone has been hiding under a rock, they will have missed Brazil progressing to one of the top five regulated gambling markets in the world after legalizing online gambling in January 2025.
And yet societal and political opposition is such that there is genuine talk of Brazil banning online gaming less than 18 months later.
Not just talk... President Lula is dead set against it.
While that remains unresolved, shelving land-based gambling legalization is logical. Regulating anything now simply risks calls to reverse the decision again in the months ahead...
The STF had already postponed the same case in 2023, when it was briefly included on the docket but removed before reaching a vote
