Brazil Sees Sharp Increase in Suspicious Betting Sites After Online Gambling Ban

Brazil’s restrictions on online betting have been followed by a sharp increase in suspicious gambling links and websites, according to monitoring data released by the National Association of Games and Lotteries (ANJL).

The LegitBet system recorded 41,716 suspicious websites as of October 8, including 30,593 confirmed. It identified 79 additional suspicious sites that day, confirming 55 of them. Daily detections between October 2 and 7 ranged from 70 to 233 new domains. Between September 8 and 23, monitored channels distributed an average of 77 such links daily. Following the September 25 implementation of the provisional measure prohibiting betting, the average rose to 549 links per day between October 1 and 7, approximately seven times the earlier level. Link circulation reached 948 on October 7 before declining to 733 on October 8.

Detection Sources and Site Characteristics

Search engines accounted for 32% of detections on October 8, databases 30%, and networks of previously monitored sites 18%. Telegram generated 13%, with 90% of those confirmed suspicious. Social media platforms accounted for 8%.

82% of the 55 confirmed domains on October 8 contained numbers in their names. The .com extension represented 43.6%, followed by .vip at 12.7% and .bet at 7.3%. The sites advertised Fortune games, PIX payments, mobile-only registration, daily bonuses, and referral incentives up to 1 million Brazilian reais. Monitoring covers only Brazil-targeted sites since October 5 and excludes Anatel’s blocking list plus authorized operators.

Official Views and the Limits of the Ban

Guilherme Mello, executive secretary of the Ministry of Planning, and Federal Revenue Secretary Robinson Barreirinhas both suggested in early October interviews that ending betting might not reduce economic activity, describing it as a “change of hands of money.” However, new data suggests the “change of hands” doesn’t necessarily happen, reports BNL Data. Instead of stopping betting altogether, many bettors seem to be migrating to illegal platforms. Unauthorized operators already represented more than 40% of betting activity despite 22 months of prior regulation.

The figures distinguish suspicious activity from confirmed legal violations, with status determined by authorities. This leaves the full scale of unauthorized betting unclear and highlights enforcement gaps after the September 25 provisional measure took effect.

Reporting: Yogonet International

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