Brazil’s Supreme Court suspends judgement on prohibition of land-based casino gambling

The court is expected to determine whether land-based casino gambling and bingo remain punishable as a criminal offence.

Brazil.- Supreme Court president Edson Fachin has agreed to temporarily suspended a hearing assessing the prohibition of land-based casino gambling in Brazil. Minister Flávio Dino had requested the measure to allow more time for review.

While online casino gambling in Brazil is currently regulated, having been introduced alongside licensed sports betting in January 2025, a proposal to regulate land-based gambling has long been held back by opposition, particularly from evangelical lawmakers. Extraordinary Appeal (RE) 966.177 seeks to clarify whether the prohibition under the Law of Criminal Offences of 1941 remains compatible with the Federal Constitution of 1988, or whether it has ceased to be valid.

The Supreme Court cannot legalise casinos, bingo halls, or other forms of gambling, but it will rule on whether the current prohibition can continue to be applied as a criminal offence based on existing legislation. Analysis began on Wednesday (August 5) with oral arguments from the parties involved in the action. The rapporteur of the process, minister Luiz Fux, began reading but did not finish. He requested that the session be closed and resumed on Thursday, when he continued presenting the opinion before the request for review.

In justifying the postponement, Dino stated that the matter had elements that could be confused with the legislation on fixed-odds betting. “If gambling is a misdemeanor, is betting also a misdemeanor? We need to explain this. Are we talking about gambling, but not betting? Why? This is important for understanding,” argued the minister.

The action was brought by the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Rio Grande do Sul against a decision by the Appeals Panel of the Special Criminal Courts. The court rejected the classification of gambling as a criminal offence, arguing that the rule conflicts with constitutional principles.

If a majority of the ministers conclude that the rule is not compatible with the 1988 Constitution, land-based gambling would no longer be considered a criminal offence. Even so, any authorisation for the operation of gambling would depend on regulations that would need to be approved by the National Congress and sanctioned by the federal government. Meanwhile, the current government, led by President Lula da Silva, has said that it will push to ban online casino gambling in Brazil.