Brazil Is Looking at Raising the Minimum Gaming Age

Brazil launched its regulated market on January 1, 2025, and since that time, the country has seen an inundation of operators, suppliers, and other companies flood its market in a bid to secure pole position and lead the way.

Lawmaker Wants to Adopt Best European Examples in Gambling Regulation

However, the debate surrounding regulation has not lessened, with the country looking to find ways to address what it considers to be weaknesses in the current regulatory framework. Such calls have come from the government itself, and on occasion, from lawmakers.

The most recent case is an example of the latter, with Senator Humberto Costa now pitching a new draft bill in which he wants to raise the minimum gambling age from currently 18 to 21.

The plan is to help protect younger and vulnerable consumers by denying them access to gambling platforms, which Senator Costa believes could lead to gambling-related harm and addiction. He is correct in his surmise, with Bill 3754/2025 acknowledging the realities that younger people are more susceptible to influences that set up bad lifetime examples.

However, the bill does not simply stop at the gambling age and looks at other aspects of the regulated market. Senator Costa also wants to see marketing restricted to certain hours.

The senator proposes a ban on gambling advertising between 6 am and 10 pm and further seeks to do away with the relationship between sports and gambling operators by eliminating such sponsorships, similar to what is happening in the United Kingdom.

Senator Costa has done extensive research, following the examples of regulated markets in Europe, and proposes to also restrict ads that target individuals under the age of 21. According to the lawmaker, there is a huge uptick in the number of problem gambling cases, largely traced back to the mass market launch that took place at the beginning of the year.

More Restrictions Coming, But Rules Are Only Meant to Make Industry Safer

The country has moved forward, taking steps to restrict potentially harmful influences on gamblers. In May, the country approved changes to the existing framework seeking to ban influencers and athletes from promoting gambling brands, as well as prohibiting in-stadium ads and commercials during live sports broadcasts.

Senator Costa believes that all of these measures are a step in the right direction, but to achieve what is necessary in protecting those consumers most at-risk, the government would have to act even more determinedly.