The Rio de Janeiro State Lottery (Loterj) can no longer accept online bets outside the state’s perimeter. The decision was made by the Federal Supreme Court (STF) and upheld the precautionary decision of the Original Civil Action (ACO) 3696, determined by Minister André Mendonça.
The decision, taken unanimously by the STF, in the trial that took place on February 28, determines that Loterj and the state government of Rio de Janeiro must stop accepting fixed-odds sports bets (bets) made outside the state of Rio de Janeiro.
Loterj announcement changed
According to the Accreditation Notice 1/2023, and following the federal regulation in force, it was required that companies interested in exploring bets in the state, have a geolocation system to ensure that real-time bets were made only in Rio de Janeiro.
Furthermore, it was also required to acquire processes that blocked access outside its territorial limits. Despite this, three months after its publication, the notice was changed, now requiring only a declaration from the bettor that the bets would be made within the state.
However, Minister Mendonça made it clear that there is a territorial distinction in the exploration of the betting market between the state power and the Union.
In his vote, Mendonça stated that the states have the authority to explore lottery activities and to regulate this exploration exclusively within their territories. Meanwhile, only the Union can explore this service in a format that goes beyond state limits.
According to Mendonça, the Loterj notice created a kind of “fiction about the expanded territorial limits of Rio de Janeiro”, he stated.
