How World Cups have tracked the transformation of sports betting in Brazil
Few sporting events illustrate the evolution of the sports betting market as clearly as the FIFA World Cup. In less than a decade, Brazil has gone from a situation in which betting on football matches was limited to a small portion of the population to one of the world’s largest betting markets.
The trajectory between the 2018 and 2022 World Cups helps explain this transformation. While the 2018 tournament in Russia took place when sports betting was still taking its first steps in the country, the 2022 World Cup in Qatar consolidated betting among millions of Brazilians and laid the groundwork for the regulation that would come into force in the following years.
Global figures help illustrate this growth. According to a study conducted by FIFA in partnership with Sportradar following the 2018 World Cup in Russia, the tournament generated approximately €136 billion (around BRL600 billion) in sports betting turnover worldwide. Four years later, estimates from Barclays, published by Bloomberg Línea and later reproduced by several specialised media outlets, indicated that the Qatar World Cup generated approximately US$35 billion (around BRL190 billion) in sports betting turnover, representing growth of around 65 per cent compared to the previous edition.
Although there are no official figures on how much Brazilians wagered specifically on each World Cup, the growth of the domestic market during this period shows that the country followed the global expansion trend.
The consolidation of betting among Brazilians
In 2018, the Brazilian landscape was very different from what it is today. Law No. 13,756, which legalised fixed-odds betting in the country, was enacted only in December of that year, months after the end of the World Cup in Russia. Until then, Brazilians who placed bets mainly used international platforms in a market that still operated without specific regulation.
By 2022, the reality was different. Betting operators were sponsoring football clubs, influencers were promoting platforms on social media, and betting brands already occupied a significant share of Brazil’s sports advertising market. The Qatar World Cup was the first major tournament in which online betting had already become mainstream among Brazilian fans.
The impact of this growth can be seen in the most recent data on the domestic market. In a study published by the Central Bank in 2024, the institution estimated that approximately 24 million Brazilians made at least one Pix transfer to betting companies during the analysed period. The same study found that monthly transfers to betting platforms ranged between BRL18 billion (US$3.34 billion) and BRL21 billion (US$3.90 billion), demonstrating the economic scale reached by the sector even before the full implementation of regulation.
According to a study published by Ipsos-Ipec in 2024, around 28 million Brazilians have already placed bets online, equivalent to approximately 18 per cent of the population. The research also showed that 8 per cent of Brazilians had placed a bet within the 30 days preceding the survey, with 6 per cent specifically participating in sports betting.
The growth of companies and advertising
Growth did not occur only among consumers. Data from BigDataCorp shows that the number of companies linked to the betting sector in Brazil increased from approximately 840 in 2022 to more than 2,100 in 2024, representing growth of more than 150 per cent in just two years. The findings illustrate how the country has become one of the most competitive markets in the global betting industry.
Advertising investment followed the same trend. According to data from Kantar Ibope Media published by Meio & Mensagem, betting companies recorded the highest growth in media buying among all economic sectors in 2024, increasing by 47 per cent compared to the previous year. In football, the presence of these brands became virtually ubiquitous. A survey by BigDataCorp showed that during the 2024 Brazilian Série A season, 18 of the league’s 20 clubs had a betting operator as their main shirt sponsor.
This accelerated growth ultimately increased the need for regulation. After years of uncertainty, the federal government began a more structured regulatory process in 2023. Provisional Measure No. 1,182, published by the Ministry of Finance in July of that year, established the foundations of the new regulatory framework. The process resulted in the approval of Law No. 14,790, enacted in December 2023, and the creation of the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting within the Ministry of Finance in January 2024.
2026: the first World Cup of the regulated era
As a result, the 2026 FIFA World Cup is expected to represent a new chapter for the sector. According to projections published by Betlaw and reproduced by Focus Gaming News, Brazil could account for approximately 10 per cent of all global betting volume during the next World Cup. Using the US$35 billion (around BRL190 billion) wagered globally during the 2022 tournament as a reference, the estimate puts the figure at around BRL19 billion (US$3.53 billion) wagered by Brazilians during the 2026 competition.
If the 2018 World Cup marked the beginning of the popularisation of sports betting in Brazil and the 2022 edition consolidated the habit among millions of consumers, the 2026 tournament has the potential to become the first World Cup of the regulated betting era in the country. For the first time, government authorities, operators and analysts will be able to measure more accurately the economic impact of a market that has become one of the main forces in the global iGaming industry.
The growth of sports betting in Brazil has not only brought more bettors and more money into the sector. In recent years, the market has also undergone a profound structural transformation, driven by regulation and by the arrival of operators willing to invest in one of the biggest opportunities in the global iGaming industry.
Until a few years ago, the Brazilian market was made up almost exclusively of foreign companies operating without a defined local regulatory framework. The landscape began to change as discussions around regulation advanced and, most importantly, following the approval of Law No. 14,790 in December 2023.
Brazil becomes a global priority
Corporate interest in the country helps explain this shift. According to a BigDataCorp survey published by Investalk, the number of companies linked to the betting sector grew from approximately 840 in 2022 to more than 2,100 in 2024, an increase of more than 150 per cent in just two years. The data demonstrates how Brazil rapidly became one of the most sought-after markets in the global industry.
Despite the explosion in the number of companies, regulation introduced a new filter for the sector. Only authorised operators can legally operate in Brazil’s regulated market. For years, the Brazilian market was dominated by offshore operators offering services to Brazilian consumers from international jurisdictions. With the creation of the new regulatory framework, the government’s objective became to attract these companies into a locally supervised framework subject to compliance requirements, oversight and tax collection.
The regulatory framework also changed the competitive dynamics of the sector. During the period without specific rules, competition centred largely on visibility. Sports sponsorships, aggressive advertising campaigns and partnerships with digital influencers were the main tools used to attract new users. Today, factors such as regulatory compliance, consumer protection, anti-money laundering measures and responsible gambling policies carry as much weight as marketing in operators’ strategies.
The market’s financial structure itself reinforces this transformation. Regulation requires significant investments in technology, transaction monitoring, customer identification and control mechanisms. This favours companies with greater operational and financial capacity while simultaneously increasing barriers to entry for smaller operators.
The economic potential of the regulated market
Another sign of the sector’s maturity is the expected growth in the regulated market. Data from H2 Gambling Capital estimates that Brazil could reach around 39 million active online betting accounts by 2026. The same study projects an average annual revenue of approximately US$133 (BRL718.20) per active account, highlighting the economic potential of the Brazilian market in the coming years.
Football remains the primary driver of this expansion. According to the same H2 Gambling Capital analysis, around 86 per cent of gross gaming revenue in the Brazilian betting market is linked to football betting. The figure helps explain why clubs, competitions and sports broadcasts have become extremely important components of operators’ commercial strategies.
The impact of this relationship is clearly visible in Brazilian football. While betting operators already appeared on 18 of the 20 Série A clubs in 2024, they remain among the sport’s largest investors in 2026. Flamengo, Corinthians, Palmeiras, São Paulo, Atlético-MG, Vasco, Fluminense and Cruzeiro are among the clubs with main sponsorship agreements involving betting operators. Beyond their widespread presence on team shirts, contract values have reached record levels, turning betting companies into one of the largest sources of commercial revenue in Brazilian football.
At the same time, the government’s role as regulator brings new challenges for the industry. Combating illegal operators, implementing responsible gambling mechanisms and enforcing regulatory compliance will be decisive factors in determining the success of the regulated model.
For operators, the market represents a unique opportunity. Reports from Regulus Partners and Betlaw place Brazil among the five largest sports betting markets in the world, behind only established markets such as the United States and the United Kingdom. The expectation is that the combination of the country’s passion for football, highly digitalised payment methods and a regulated environment will continue to attract billions in investment.
This article was first published on the Portuguese SiGMA News page on 10 June 2026.
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