DataSenado Brazil Survey: Brazilians Support the Legalization of Bingos and Casinos (See)

Brazil – April 25, 2025 | www.zonadeazar.com A survey conducted by DataSenado shows that most Brazilians support the legalization of gambling activities such as bingo, casinos, and the “jogo do bicho,” but they also demand mechanisms to prevent illicit activities, such as money laundering.

In addition, respondents also favor measures to prevent gambling addiction and over-indebtedness.

The results were released earlier this week.

The survey was requested by Senator Irajá (PSD-TO), who is the rapporteur of Bill 2,234/2022, authored by former deputy Renato Vianna (MDB-SC), which authorizes the operation of casinos and bingos in Brazil. The bill also legalizes “jogo do bicho” and allows betting on horse racing, among other games of chance. The rapporteur’s intention is to provide supporting data for the deliberation of the bill.

Results

After being informed of the main points of the proposal, 60% of respondents expressed support for its approval in the Senate. Opponents represent 34% of the population, while 6% either did not know or chose not to respond. When asked if they would be interested in participating in such games if legalized and regulated, 26% expressed interest.

Regarding the effectiveness of prohibiting establishments and gambling, 50% of those surveyed believe that prohibition contributes little (21%) or nothing (29%) to reducing availability. Conversely, 45% believe that prohibition reduces availability: 25% think it helps significantly, and 20% believe it has a moderate impact.

The majority (58%) said that legalizing gambling and casinos would help increase tax revenue, and 44% believe it would increase employment. Regarding jobs, 36% believe legalization would make no difference.

Pesquisa-datasenado-aponta-apoio-da-populacao-a-legalizacao-de-jogos-no-brasil

Control Measures

The survey also showed that although the majority support legalization, Brazilians are concerned about illegal activities such as money laundering and gambling addiction. Therefore, many support measures to prevent at-risk individuals from betting.

A significant majority (82%) consider it very important (65%) or important (17%) to have rules to prevent gaming and casino companies from being used for money laundering or organized crime financing. Another measure in the bill—the monitoring of games and machines such as slot machines—also received support: 62% considered it a positive proposal.

The creation of a confidential national registry of gambling addicts, to prevent them from entering gambling venues, was supported by 54% of respondents. Another major concern is the adoption of rules to prevent people from falling into debt due to gambling, with 77% in favor.

Survey Details

[Survey: DataSenado Indicates Public Support for Legalization of Gambling in Brazil]
The national survey was conducted from February 21 to March 1 of this year. A total of 5,039 people aged 16 and older were interviewed by telephone, selected through stratified random sampling. The average margin of error is 1.72 percentage points, with a 95% confidence level.

Bill

Bill 2,234/2022 was placed on the Senate plenary agenda in December 2024 but was withdrawn at the request of the rapporteur in an attempt to reach consensus. The bill has been requested for urgent voting, but has yet to be voted on.

At the time, Senator Flávio Arns (PSB-PR) submitted a request to gather data from public agencies on the potential impact of the bill on public mental health services, including psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers treating gambling addiction.

Before withdrawing the bill, Senator Irajá noted that some of these games already operate illegally in Brazil.

“We are facing a major dilemma in Brazil. There are those who support keeping gambling under the control of organized crime. And there are those like me, who advocate for responsible, state-regulated gambling, with oversight, tax collection, and punishment for those who break the law,” he argued.

Source: Agência Senado
Editor: @_fonta | www.zonadeazar.com