Brazil's Supreme Court Sets 3 November Hearing on the Betting Ban, With 28 Entities Including Top Football Clubs

Brazil's Supreme Federal Court (STF) will take evidence at a public hearing in Brasília on 3 November 2026 on Provisional Measure (MP) 1,394, the decree that has banned fixed-odds betting across the country since late September, giving 28 government bodies, industry groups and football organizations ten minutes each before Justice Luiz Fux decides whether to suspend the ban. The court published the schedule on 28 October. Until Fux rules, the ban stays in force.

The STF is Brazil's highest court on constitutional questions. A provisional measure is a decree the president can issue in urgent cases; it takes effect at once but lapses unless Congress approves it within 120 days.

What the hearing is and when it happens

The session starts at 10:00 on Tuesday, 3 November, in the session room of the court's Second Panel, and the court's own television and radio channels, plus its YouTube account, will stream it live. Each selected entity can send up to two representatives, whose names were due at the court by 15:00 on 29 October.

Fux convened the hearing in ADI 8027, a direct action of unconstitutionality (ação direta de inconstitucionalidade) filed by the National Association of Games and Lotteries (ANJL), which represents licensed operators. ANJL asks the court to suspend MP 1,394 immediately, strike it down at final judgment, and confirm that the laws regulating fixed-odds betting are valid.

The request for a hearing came from the Attorney General's Office (AGU), the federal government's legal arm, which defends the ban. In an October filing it argued that new evidence on betting's harms since the court's last hearing, in November 2024, plus the measure itself, justified reopening the debate. The plaintiffs and admitted amici curiae also asked to be heard, according to the STF.

Who will speak

Fux's original order named 26 entities. The final list has 28, after the Ministry of Sports and the Brazilian Olympic Committee (COB) were added.

The presence of ten clubs reflects how much Brazilian football depends on betting sponsorship. Clubs have pushed back before: Gamingo reported in 2023 on 34 Brazilian football clubs rallying against a proposed betting sponsorship ban. BNLData noted that the Health and Justice ministries, Congress and bettor representatives are not on the list.

Seven cases, two laws

The hearing serves seven direct actions, all assigned to Fux. Four target MP 1,394 itself. Three were filed earlier against Law 14,790/2023, the 2023 statute that created Brazil's licensed betting market, and were the subject of the November 2024 hearing.

The two sets of cases pull in opposite directions. The CNC and the PGR argued against the 2023 law and the harms of betting; the operators now argue that MP 1,394 lacked the constitutional urgency a provisional measure requires. The 2024 hearing heard more than 50 specialists and public bodies, and the court later barred betting with social welfare funds in the same proceedings.

Where the ban stands

MP 1,394 was published on 25 September 2026. It prohibits the operation, offer, intermediation and advertising of fixed-odds bets on sports and online casino games, including by state-licensed operators. Licensed sites had to go dark in early October, and federal authorizations lapsed on 25 October, as Gamingo set out in its report on Brazil's betting ban ahead of the presidential runoff.

Fux has so far declined to grant the injunction the sector requested. According to BNLData, citing Folha de S.Paulo, he avoided ruling during the election period and signed the hearing order on 26 October, the day after the runoff. The same reports say the hearing may test a possible agreement between the government, operators and clubs; one scenario discussed in the press would restore sports betting while keeping online casino and slots banned. No party has confirmed such talks.

Congress has its own clock. Lawmakers filed 99 amendments to the measure, and it must be approved within 120 days of publication or lose effect.

Why it matters

The ruling will decide whether Brazil keeps the licensed market it opened in January 2025 or returns to prohibition. Operators say the ban pushes players to unlicensed sites; the government says the social costs justify it. Gamingo covered the start of this legal fight in Brazil's online gambling market facing its biggest legal test yet, before the decree was issued.

Status reviewed on 30 October 2026. Hearing date, participants and case numbers are from the STF's announcements of 27 and 28 October; the participant list is completed from BNLData's report of Fux's order. More regulation news and Latam & Caribbean coverage.