About this app
What is Fat Santa?
The president’s critical view of betting is on par with other candidates. Studies by the Workers’ Party (PT) indicate that three out of four Brazilians are against betting establishments. This is the president’s justification against the sector.
What the president didn’t address is the tax revenue from betting.
In 2025, Brazil collected almost BRL10 billion ($1.97 billion) in tax revenue from the licensed sector. In the first seven months of this year alone, BRL8.7 billion generated by the activity was delivered to public coffers. The Federal Revenue Service itself estimates that the sector should reach BRL16 billion in revenue during 2026.
What is Fat Santa?
Here, advertising for online betting sites is positioned differently. Presented as news, the content talks about the highest odds on the market, features offered by operators, regulatory changes and various cases of bettors, ranging from those who made huge financial gains to those who lost everything.
It is very common among the different profiles identified to refer to regulatory bodies, such as the National Advertising Self-Regulation Council and SIGAP (Brazil’s betting management system). They also speak of responsible gaming in a generic way. In many cases, this is associated with illegal operators and potentially irregular advertising practices.
In this context, the regulations developed to protect players begin to function as a means of legitimisation, with illegal operators even using the term “authorised” in their communication and the “.bet” extension in their domain, which is intended only for licensed operators.
About Fat Santa
One of the main concerns is Bill 560/2025, which is currently making its way through the council. The proposal prohibits advertising by betting companies at events in the city of São Paulo. This applies to events organised by public or private entities, whether for-profit or non-profit.
The bill prohibits signs, banners, or display panels in arenas, gymnasiums, stadiums and other sports event venues. It also bans advertising on public transport, such as the side panel, exterior or the rear window of buses. The bill imposes a fine of BRL50,000 ($10,000) and a ban on hosting events for up to two years.
The proposal does not explicitly prohibit the display of betting brands on team jerseys, but some city councillors want to include this in the bill.
