Taxation and advertising top challenges as Brazil's regulated betting market nears two-year milestone
2026-07-29
Source: SBC News
A new SBC Insights survey of 51 Brazilian betting executives finds taxation (65.3%) and advertising restrictions (48.9% see them as a major barrier) are the top challenges, yet 71.7% remain committed to expanding in the market, with most expecting maturity within two to five years.
Eighteen months after Brazil introduced its regulated gambling framework, the market has experienced significant shifts. A new independent report from SBC Insights, titled Brazil Betting Outlook 2026: One Year into Regulation, captures how stakeholders view the first full year of legal operations. The study surveyed 51 executives working directly in the Brazilian betting ecosystem, including operators, regulators, suppliers, legal experts, and independent consultants, combining qualitative interviews with quantitative data gathered around the time of SBC Summit Rio 2025.
Taxation emerges as the single greatest operational hurdle, cited by 65.3% of respondents as the most pressing challenge for market viability. Concerns over advertising restrictions follow closely, with 20.4% of participants flagging recent legislative changes around marketing as a red flag. Nearly half (48.9%) believe current advertising curbs already pose a serious barrier to long-term growth, amid ongoing political debate over athlete endorsements, influencer promotions, and betting visibility during sports broadcasts.
In response to those debates, Brazil's gambling regulator, the Secretariat of Prizes and Bets (SPA), alongside the Brazilian Institute for Responsible Gaming (IJBR), has defended the existing rules as sufficient to prevent excessive enticement of players. This came after a bill (No. 1,212/2025) introduced by Saulo Pedroso, president of Brazil's Sports Committee, sought to further tighten gambling marketing. Licensing and compliance each drew concern from 6.1% of survey respondents.
Despite these headwinds, industry confidence remains resilient. 71.7% of executives are committed to expanding their operations in Brazil, with 21.7% pursuing aggressive growth strategies. The average optimism score stands at 3.26 out of 5, and 68.2% of participants expect the market to reach maturity within the next two to five years. The full report includes deeper analysis on regulatory confidence, the commercial impact of taxation, shifting acquisition strategies, and the balance between player protection and market growth.