For a country that gave the world Carnival, capoeira and caipirinhas, Brazil’s long-running casino ban has always felt a bit out of sync. Once home to glamorous gambling dens that rivaled Las Vegas in its heyday, Brazil suspended legalized gambling in 1946. Nearly 80 years later, the roulette wheel is spinning again — this time, in the cloud.
From glittering salons to total prohibition
Gambling in Brazil dates back to colonial times, with games such as cards and dice becoming popular, but its heyday was in the early 20th century. In the 1930s and early 1940s, the casino scene in Brazil was booming. The Quitandinha Palace in Petrópolis and the Urca Casino in Rio hosted the likes of Carmen Miranda and other international names. These venues combined samba, fine dining and blackjack for an unforgettable experience.
Then came 1946. President Eurico Gaspar Dutra, pressured by religious and conservative groups, shut everything down with a single decree. More than 70 casinos closed overnight and thousands lost their jobs.
But the game never went away
After the ban, casinos became clandestine.
One of the most popular alternatives was Jogo do Bicho, which was widespread throughout Brazil and had been an open secret on the streets for decades. Then came bingo halls and slot machines, which operated in legal gray areas. Some operated under the guise of charities or religious fundraisers. Others simply bribed local authorities to look the other way.
So gamblers adapted again. Offshore online casinos began to emerge in the 2010s, and using foreign platforms, Brazilians could continue to bet on sports, slots and poker from a smartphone.
And when cryptocurrencies came along, things got even easier: with Bitcoin or USDT, players can visit sportbet.one/casino or another blockchain platform and deposit and withdraw anonymously, completely bypassing the usual banking hurdles.
Then the law arrived
In 2018, Brazil finally legalized fixed-odds sports betting. But the real turning point came in late 2023, when the government passed Law 14.790/23, which regulates online betting and taxes companies and players. Companies now need a license worth R$30 million and must follow strict compliance rules.
What about land-based casinos? A new bill could legalize them in 2025. If approved, the history of casinos in Brazil could be revived — only this time, there’s the internet, cryptocurrencies and more money at stake.
