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The governor of Acre, Gladson Camelí, has vetoed an amendment that would have forbidden the conduct of sports betting and casino-style games in the scope of the State Lottery of Acre. The veto was published in a special edition of the State Official Gazette (DOE) last Wednesday, the 21st, and applies to an amendment proposed by state deputy Eduardo Ribeiro, Partido Social Democrático (PSD).
The rejected amendment would have banned the practice of fixed-odds betting, also known as “bets”, as well as online games and casino-like modalities within the state lotteries framework. For the state government, however, the measure conflicted with Brazil’s national regulatory framework for betting and lottery services.
Why the Amendment Was Vetoed
In the proposed amendment, the deputy established a broad prohibition on the “exploitation, authorization, accreditation, intermediation, promotion, advertising, or any form of operation of fixed-odds betting, electronic or virtual games known as ‘tigrinho,’ casinos, and any similar modalities” within the State Lottery of Acre.
In his partial veto, Governor Gladson Camelí explained that the State Secretariat of Finance was consulted and made it clear that the amendment would “actually prohibit fixed-odds betting as a lottery modality, both about real-world and virtual world wagers.” The veto text also defined what fixed-odds betting is, namely a lottery format where “the amount of the prize comes to be pre-defined in the moment of placing the bet, by correctly guessing the outcome of said event.”
National Regulation Takes Precedence
The senator stated that fixed-odds bets are regulated on a national level. According to him, the federal government had already declared that this type of activity can be explored throughout all Brazilian territory, in accordance with federal regulations, among them being Ordinance SPA/MF No. 827 from May 21, 2024.
The veto underlined that fixed-odds betting is already available in Acre from operators with federal licenses. The veto also mentioned that the “bet.br” domain is reserved only for these operators, per rules provided by the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting and Normative Instruction SP/MF No. 11, dated November 4, 2024.
Casinos, Legal Gaps, and Consumer Protection
On the issue of the prohibition on casinos, the governor explained that no federal law has been passed yet either approving or providing for the operation of casinos in Brazil. Accordingly, he emphasized that such legislation remains under debate in the Federal Senate and therefore states cannot unilaterally set rules for an industry without a national statutory framework.
Meanwhile, the veto referred to existing federal measures that protect vulnerable users. Among these are norms that prevent spending resources from social programs, such as Bolsa Família and Continuous Cash Benefit, on bets: according to Ordinance SPA/MF No. 2.217 of September 30, 2025.
The governor also referred to restrictions regarding individuals who have been diagnosed as pathological gamblers, according to Article 26 of Federal Law No. 14.790 of 2023.
Legal Disputes and Ongoing Challenges
Finally, the veto referred to the presence of an ADI-Action of Unconstitutionality No. 7721, currently under review by Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court: a case that has contested the regulatory setup for fixed-odds betting in the country and emphasized how much legal uncertainty still surrounds the sector.
By combining these arguments, the veto reinforces the federal regulation of the development of bets as being more important, the absence of casino rules at the national level, and, among other measures, that of consumer protection. The ruling now illustrates the delicate balance between state initiatives and Brazil’s changing national regulatory landscape on betting and gambling.
Source: iGaming Brasil
