Key Points
- In relation to the prosecutors’ plea, Justice Luis Fux did not hesitate much – on the second day after receiving the motion, he suspended all ordinary challenges to the betting ban.
- On the other hand, the request for a stay filed by the same industry had been pending since the 28th of September for 42 days prior to the Supreme Federal Court’s ruling on the issue.
- The approval of a stay requires the vote of the plenary of the Supreme Federal Court, and thus it is still uncertain whether the ban would pass the constitutional muster.
Although a petition filed on Friday was granted on Sunday, the second one filed by the industry on the 28th of September was not ruled on until Monday.
On 8 November, Fux made a decision to suspend all ordinary challenges to the constitutionality of the betting ban in Brazil until the Supreme Federal Court takes a decision on four challenges – ADIs 8.024, 8.027, 8.028 and 8.035.
President Lula signed Provisional Measure (MP) 1.394/2026 on the 25th of September, which provided for a ban on fixed-odds betting in Brazil. The provision prohibits the operation, offer, advertising and intermediary activity with respect to such betting on sports competitions and virtual games but does not touch any other lottery-type gambling activities.
2 Days for the Prosecutor, 42 for the Industry
The prosecutor’s plea for a suspension filed by Paulo Gonet on the 6th of November received approval two days later, namely, on Sunday. Gonet said that the actions of Stake and CDA Gaming had been performed in the absence of such legal powers, which created uncertainty and uneven enforcement of the law.
The plea for a suspension of the measure was filed by the representatives of the industry on the 28th of September and was supported by the organisations ANJL and IBJR. Instead of a suspension, Fux ordered a public hearing on the 3rd of November.
How Stake and CDA Gaming Forced the Court’s Hand?
Stake Brazil got a partial injunction in São Paulo on 8 October; the following day, it was overturned by an appeals court. Appeals court president Luís Antonio Johonsom di Salvo did this at the behest of the government. He claims that giving one trader access while denying others amounts to regulatory disparity.
The three brands of CDA Gaming received permission from appeals court judge Adriana Pileggi on 3 November to go back into business once again: Casa de Apostas, Betsul and Jogo Online. She claims that issuing an order like this is not equivalent to a reimbursement of the licence fee, which “amounts to a confiscation.” Di Salvo reversed her decision on 6 November, saying “normative instability” is an issue when the policy is applied nationally. By 9 a.m. on 9 November, CDA Gaming brands had all gone offline. There is no longer any licensed operator in Brazil.
The Money at Stake on the Decision
The authorisations were for R30m for five years and were limited to three brands under the licensing ordinance. As NEXT.io reveals, operators have started to realise their need for R2.5bn in refunds, while Article 4 denies the refund or compensation. According to the betting lawyer at Natal & Manssur, “He killed any company’s chances of taking any action.” “ALL,” which is written in capital letters, refers to the fee claims in the order, but no reference to license fees is made in the text.
The Fluminense officials claim that the betting industry remitted R11bn in tax revenues from January to September 2025. The hearing fact check by an independent source says that the amount is inaccurate. Federal Revenue reports issued in September 2025 show that there has been R$6.853bn of gambling activity since January.
A Rapporteur With His Views on the Law
According to Fux’s ruling on 6 August, games of chance are to remain in the public domain as a crime since “The state protects the individual from himself.” However, the ruling was limited to terrestrial gaming. The court unanimously agreed with him that betting advertising to minors be banned in its unanimous ruling made in November 2024.
Regarding his delayed ruling on 3 November, he explained: “Sometimes the Court has to decide not to decide.” According to Fux, his reason for delaying the ruling was to avoid the “undue interference” of the judiciary when there was an election going on. The Attorney General, Jorge Messias, defended the ruling of the ban using the phrase “failed experiment” to refer to the previous regime. The facts on gambling issues and their effects on families are provided by the Health Minister, Alexandre Padilha. One knows that Fux wants to ban gambling, but the court needs to maintain legal stability.
Sealed Papers and Questions Regarding Studies
The ban comes accompanied by papers no one outside the government can see. The Ministry of Justice sealed all documents underlying the measure for five years in accordance with the classification signed on 24 September. Legal opinions are sealed in another envelope due to the attorney-client privilege invoked by the Chief of Staff’s Office of the presidency. Responding to an information request, the Finance Ministry said that the “information does not exist” regarding the studies on the matter. Sport’s own ministry said BNLData found no evidence of its involvement in the preparation of the measure.
Of course, none of that proves anything about the contents of the sealed files, and a betting lawyer was very careful not to say anything else. “Any statement here, one way or the other, would be mere speculation,” he noted. It is worth mentioning that Fux, as the rapporteur, is entitled to require additional disclosure from the government since the classification cannot be applied to courts.
Next Steps
There are three phases of independent consideration that must be conducted for the definition of this case, none of which has a predetermined date at this moment. Firstly, the plenary of eleven members must approve the decision of Fux.
Expert Analysis: The Calendar Reveals the Truth
In this particular case, the calendar tells the truth. The request from a prosecutor was taken care of in two days, whereas the appeal from the industry was waiting for 42 days.
It is Fux’s prerogative to make such decisions on his own, and the justices Flávio Dino and Gilmar Mendes also did that back in 2025. The operators got a clear signal; according to an operator of NEXT.io, “I realised there would be no room left with Fux.” There were two successes for the operators in the lower court; there won’t be a third success.
The classified papers pose another problem; if it were really a good case, then there would have been no need to classify anything. The classification is legal and nothing was proven about its illegality. Gambling has negative impacts, and therefore the health problem needs to have an answer based on the facts. Our interest is in the process rather than the outcome since it needs valid reasons.
The first date is of initial importance; the second date is even more important and yet to be fixed.
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