Illegal Betting Domains Surge in Brazil Following Online Betting Ban

Hundreds of additional unauthorised betting domains have emerged in Brazil within just two days of the government announcing a ban on online betting, highlighting the scale of the challenge authorities face as they move to curb the country’s illegal gambling market.

Monitoring conducted by Bet Legal in collaboration with cybersecurity company Iron Security identified 710 unauthorised betting domains by Sunday evening, a sharp increase from the 295 domains recorded at 18:00 on Friday, when the prohibition was announced.

The rise amounts to 415 additional domains, or 141%, with 294 new domains detected on Saturday alone. The figures do not necessarily correspond to separate betting operators, as individual companies may run multiple versions or variations of the same domain.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva introduced Provisional Measure 1.394 on Friday, prohibiting fixed-odds betting and online gaming across Brazil. At the same time, the federal government has stepped up enforcement measures targeting operators that continue to offer betting services without authorisation.

A joint task force involving Brazil’s Ministries of Justice and Public Security and Finance reported that it had taken down 506 websites suspected of irregular betting activity following the introduction of the measure. According to officials, the operation is designed not only to block access to unauthorised platforms but also to prevent operators from simply switching to replacement domains and continuing to provide betting services.

Government monitoring has meanwhile found that betting-related advertising remains active across major digital platforms. Brazil’s Cyber Operations Laboratory identified approximately 1,960 Google advertisements linked to seven domains between September 25 and 27.

Authorities said they were unable to establish how many of those advertisements had first appeared after the prohibition came into effect. Separately, officials documented seven advertisements on Meta, two of which began running after the measure was introduced.

Authorities have also uncovered 43 active Telegram groups and channels promoting betting and online casino gaming. Together, these groups and channels had attracted 212,634 members, with nine channels accounting for more than 172,000 users.

Plínio Lemos Jorge, president of the National Association of Games & Lotteries, warned that illegal operators were already increasing their activities following the government’s move.

“The clandestine websites have expanded their offerings and continue to operate outside the law and oversight,” he said.

The crackdown comes as Brazil prepares for licensed betting platforms to cease operations on October 6. With authorised operators set to leave the market, the extent to which bettors migrate towards unauthorised platforms has become a central concern for authorities as enforcement of the new prohibition intensifies.

By fLEXI tEAM