Tax revenues confirm Brazil’s regulated betting market holds firm
Table of contents
- Brazil’s regulated online betting and gaming market produced BRL1.03bn ($196.9m) in federal tax revenue in February.
- That marks a 47% increase on February 2025’s BRL701m ($133.9m).
- Daniele Cardoso has been confirmed as permanent head of the Secretariat of Prizes and Bets (SPA), succeeding Regis Dudena.
Brazil’s regulated online gambling market generated BRL1.03bn (approximately $196.9m) in federal tax revenue in February, the Brazilian government has confirmed.
This number is clearly showing the market’s rapid maturation even as the figure declined from the exceptional level recorded in January.
Strong annual growth
The latest figure, reported by Brazil’s federal tax authority, represents a 47% increase from February 2025’s BRL701m ($133.9m), reflecting the continued development of the country’s regulated betting and gaming ecosystem.
Month-on-month, the drop from January’s BRL1.5bn ($291.1m) is consistent with seasonal patterns seen in other regulated markets and reflects the base effect of January 2025, when the market had only recently launched under the formal regulatory framework that came into force on 1 January 2025.
The year-on-year growth trajectory remains striking. The yearly comparison for January showed a 2,642% increase on the BRL55m ($10.7m) posted in January 2025. February’s 47% annual gain is a more normalized but still substantial improvement, pointing to genuine structural growth rather than a simple base effect.
Tax revenue is currently calculated under a 12% gross gaming revenue (GGR) rate, with legislation already approved to raise that to 13% in 2026 and 15% by 2028, generating additional pressure on operator margins as the market matures.
New permanent leadership at the SPA
The revenue figures arrive after Brazil’s gambling regulator secured stability in its leadership.
Daniele Cardoso was confirmed as permanent leader of the Secretariat of Prizes and Bets (SPA) last week on 23 March, announced by Brazil’s Minister of Finance Dario Durigan on X.
Cardoso had served in the interim role since late January, following the departure of Regis Dudena, who moved to lead the Secretariat for Economic Reforms after overseeing the establishment of Brazil’s regulated fixed-odds betting framework from its inception.
Durigan said:
“Nobody does anything alone. We are a serious, united, and technical Ministry. Women and men committed to making a difference every day, working for the prosperity of Brazilian families.”
Cardoso’s priorities include tackling illegal operators and strengthening consumer safeguards. She has highlighted plans to expand the national self-exclusion system and introduce data-driven tools to prevent harmful behaviour before exclusion becomes necessary.
The SPA is also enforcing measures requiring operators to use the Betting Management System (Sigap) to cross-reference customer taxpayer IDs with national welfare databases, automatically blocking individuals enrolled in social assistance programmes from opening gambling accounts.
Increasing political pressure
Despite the revenue growth, Brazil’s regulated market is navigating an increasingly difficult political environment.
The SPA has flagged concerns about the entry of prediction market operator Kalshi into the Brazilian market, clarifying that no Brazilian companies are currently authorized to offer prediction markets and that the sector is under preliminary internal analysis.
The political climate has grown more hostile on multiple fronts. In a national broadcast on 7 March, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva called for legislation to ban online casino games, describing gambling addiction as a tragedy for Brazilian families. This is a notable reversal given Lula signed the law legalizing digital gambling in December 2023.
Legal experts have noted that any ban would require a full new legislative process and broad political support, neither of which appears imminent. The iGaming industry has warned that operators will start to feel unwelcome in this market which can ultimately lead to companies leaving in absence of a stable and predictable business environment.
Separately, Senator Eduardo Girão has introduced PL 1018/2026, which would prohibit licensed operators from offering loyalty programmes, cashback, gamification mechanics and personalized marketing communications. If passed, operators would have 90 days to comply.
The bill adds to a bipartisan push in the Senate to introduce a 15% deposit tax — the CIDE-Bets measure — which remains in legislative discussion.
With permanent leadership now in place at the SPA and February’s tax revenue running strongly ahead of year-ago levels, the fiscal case for Brazil’s regulated model is becoming increasingly difficult to dispute.
The combination of record revenues, stable regulatory leadership and intensifying legislative pressure will define the conditions under which operators must plan their Brazil strategies for the remainder of 2026.
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About the author
Bianca Máthe
Bianca Mathe joined the iGaming industry in 2018 and has since built extensive experience across multiple verticals, working with international gaming organizations on editorial, marketing, and media strategy. She brings a strong understanding of the regulatory, commercial, and technological forces shaping the global iGaming sector.
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