Proposals seek to limit gambling house ads and restrict athletes and celebrities' participation in advertising campaigns.
Brazil.- The Sports Commission (CEsp) of the Brazilian Senate will discuss in a public hearing two bills aimed at regulating fixed-odds betting advertising. The first, Bill 2.985/2023, proposes to ban the propaganda of these services, while the second, Bill 3.405/2023, aims to prevent athletes, former athletes, celebrities, and influencers from participating in sports betting platform campaigns. The requests to debate both issues, presented by Senators Carlos Portinho and Jorge Kajuru, were approved on Wednesday, March 12, 2025. The date of the hearing is yet to be defined.
Bill 2.985/2023, authored by Senator Styvenson Valentim, argues that the growing economic power of betting companies demands legislative intervention to establish clear limits to this activity. The text has Senator Portinho as its rapporteur, who also requested that the debate take place in April, preferably in the Senate Plenary, with the participation of representatives from all positions on the subject.
The senator maintains that the Legislature must act to establish limits to the activity. "The proposal is justified by the sudden change in the profile of gamblers, now mainly composed of young people, who have at their fingertips, with a single click, the possibility of betting without any barriers to impulsive behaviors," stated Styvenson Valentim.
The project has a favorable report from Senator Carlos Portinho, who presented an amendment that establishes limits on advertising. Among them are restrictions on television and radio times, the prohibition of its dissemination through printed or electronic media, including the Internet, and the prohibition of the participation of athletes, artists, influencers, authorities, and other personalities who may influence the public or encourage betting.
"The rampant advertising in this sector leads viewers to believe that, with a stroke of luck, they will achieve financial independence. Reality has shown even more pronounced impoverishment of the economically most vulnerable segments of the population," warns the report.
For its part, Bill 3.405/2023, driven by Senator Eduardo Girão and with Sérgio Petecão as rapporteur, proposes to incorporate into the law regulating bets the prohibition of advertising carried out by sports teams, athletes, presenters, commentators, and celebrities. Additionally, it extends the restriction to digital influencers and anyone with the capacity to significantly impact public behavior, as detailed in future regulations.
