The National Association of Games and Lotteries (ANJL) and the Brazilian Institute of Responsible Gaming (IBJR) have asked the Supreme Federal Court (STF) to suspend Brazil’s betting prohibition until a new public hearing has been held.
In a petition dated 6 October and addressed to Supreme Federal Court Justice Luiz Fux in proceedings under ADI 7721, the associations requested the temporary suspension of Provisional Measure 1,394/2026. Their principal request would allow authorised operators to resume accepting deposits and wagers until the hearing takes place.
According to the petition, the federal government, represented by the Attorney General’s Office (AGU), requested another public hearing to consider updated evidence from the regulated market while opposing suspension of the prohibition. The AGU asked Fux to await a submission from the Prosecutor General’s Office (PGR) before ruling.
“If the Union itself considers that the matter requires further evidence, the logical consequence is to preserve the object of that evidence while it is gathered,” ANJL and IBJR argued. They said holding the hearing after authorisations had been revoked, contracts terminated and players dispersed would mean debating a “fait accompli”.
Alternatively, the associations want licensed operators permitted to continue operating until 11.59pm on 31 December. The deadlines established by the provisional measure would then begin running at 12.01am on 1 January 2027.
The petition also asks the authorities to restore access to authorised platforms, stop redirecting their website traffic, reactivate their social-media accounts and permit transactions with licensed operators during any suspension or transition period.
It states that new deposits and wagers were prohibited following the measure’s publication on 25 September, licensed platforms went offline on 6 October and existing federal authorisations are scheduled to be extinguished on 25 October.
ANJL and IBJR argued that removing regulated operators could accelerate migration towards illegal platforms.
The petition cited a government submission stating that 10,435 illegal websites were referred for blocking between 25 September and 1 October. It also cited Bet Legal figures showing detected unauthorised domains rising from 1,195 at the end of 24 September to 1,949 by the morning of 6 October.
The associations said 83 companies paid BRL2.55 billion for 85 five-year authorisations between January 2025 and March 2026. The provisional measure provides for those authorisations to be terminated without reimbursement or compensation.
The request represents a further stage in the industry’s legal challenge. On 28 September, ANJL filed ADI 8027 directly contesting Provisional Measure 1,394/2026 and seeking its suspension. The latest petition makes a narrower interim request linked to the proposed public hearing, with continued licensed operations until the hearing or, alternatively, a transition beginning on 31 December.