Brazil’s regional lotteries have once again become an apple of discord at the highest level of national politics.
Members of the social democratic party Solidariedade turned to the Supreme Federal Court (STF) with a 36-page filing.
The party’s claim is based on the belief that all lotteries created and run locally by municipalities are in direct breach of the Brazilian constitution.
Brazil’s regulations first kicked in at the start of 2025, finally placing years of black and grey market gambling activity under a unified compliance framework with the introduction of Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA) – the Brazilian regulator.
Ever since, lotteries that have been running under the control of Brazil’s 5,500 local authorities have been subjected to new rules encompassing both taxation and player safety.
Lotteries vs State
However, not everything has been going to plan accordingly. For one, the state of Rio de Janeiro was given a preliminary injunction by Supreme Court Justice André Mendonça to cease the issuing of lottery licenses, as this now falls within the remits of SPA and the Bets regime.
Not only that, but Rio’s Loterj operator was ordered to implement new geolocation tools that would prevent players from outside the state from participating in the state’s lotteries.
Loterj appealed the decision, citing negative consequences for the 25 licensed operators in the state, including PixBet and Esportes da Sorte.
STF’s consequent decision to uphold Mendonça’s injunction against a state lottery could be a sign for the Court’s course of action going forward regarding municipality-run lotteries as well.
As of yet, Solidariedade’s request to provisionally suspend municipal lotteries is pending a final decision by the STF, which is expected to come in the first half of this year.