Brazilian Government Received 1,000+ Complaints Against Gambling Companies

Although Brazil has licensed its sports betting industry, it has done so with one major caveat – fail to uphold rules as an industry and face the consequences, among which – a possible suspension of gambling altogether.

Brazil Tracks Consumer Complaints Against Regulated Gambling

Now, the federally-run platform Consumidor.gov.br has received more than 1,000 complaints against companies from the sector since the industry launched on January 1, 2025. The complaints only factor in the numbers through April, with more possibly piling in.

The most cited operators were in fact regulated and well-established locally, with complaints mostly targeting such majors as bet365, Novibet, and Betano, all of which operate legitimately in the market and have historically a good reputation for doing right by their customers.

Among the other companies criticized, the names of XPBet and Betfair come up, but there is hardly a major gambling company in Brazil right now that has not been targeted by tech-savvy consumers who have turned to the federal government for help.

Consumidor.gov.br is designed as an ambitious effort by the government to track complaints lodged against established gambling companies, and thus obligate companies to treat their customers fairly.

Government Determined to Protect Consumers

However, the scope of the project comes with some obvious drawbacks, such as the resources necessary to properly assess each complaint lodged against a single operator. The government needs to plow significant resources in order to determining if each case has merit, as many consumer complaints may be stemming from players getting angry at a losing wager, for example.

Conversely, investigators also need to account for whether operators have been using misleading promotional offers. When the United States first legalized its sports betting market, companies took to offering “risk-free wagers,” which were later struck down by regulators as misleading.

To this end, Brazil’s Senate has approved a new bill that restricts gambling advertisement, as legislators are keen to ensure that consumers are protected. The Brazilian Senate has approved Bill PL 2.985/2023, introducing new limitations on gambling-related advertising, even though industry stakeholders have cautioned that limiting ads might empower the black market.