The tax engine of Brazil's gambling industry is running at full speed. According to data disclosed by federal tax auditors Clodomir Maracaias and Marcelo Gomide at a briefing attended by tax director Robinson Barreirinhas, the revenue from sports betting and online gambling in Brazil has reached BRL 5.89 billion (about $1.18 billion) in the first five months of 2026, an 85.88% surge from BRL 3.169 billion (about $634 million) in the same period of 2025. Even more astonishing, the revenue in just five months has already exceeded 60% of the total BRL 9.95 billion (about $1.99 billion) for the entire year of 2025. PASA's official website noted that the timing of this data release coincides with the middle of the World Cup schedule—according to tracking by third-party data company Klavi, the consumption pulse brought by the event is pushing the annual expectations to new heights.
Five months surpassing 60% of last year, aiming for BRL 14 billion for the year
Based on the current monthly average, Brazil's total gambling revenue in 2026 is expected to exceed BRL 14 billion (about $2.8 billion). Considering that the World Cup is currently at the most enthusiastic knockout stage for Brazilian fans, this estimate might be conservative.
Klavi's data more vividly demonstrates the catalytic effect of the World Cup. From the opening of the event until June 25, Brazilian players have transferred nearly BRL 510 million (about $102 million) to licensed platforms. On June 24 alone, during the match between Brazil and Scotland, more than BRL 25 million (about $5 million) circulated on the platforms, a 35% jump from the daily average before the World Cup. The average transaction amount per person has also risen significantly: from about BRL 185 (about $37) before the event to BRL 235 (about $47), an increase of 24%. Klavi's research covers 1.2 million individual users and transactions across 187 licensed Brazilian sites, a sample size sufficient to support judgments.
The other side of growth: taxes missed by illegal sites, more than what has been collected
The data is exciting, and the tax auditors also raised an unavoidable question in their report: if the government could bring underground gambling sites into the legal framework—or at least effectively block all illegal operations—tax revenue could double. In other words, next to every real collected, there might stand a corresponding item lost through illegal channels.
Driving illegal operators out of the market and guiding players to licensed sites is easy to say but involves complex challenges such as payment blocking, network screening, and cross-jurisdictional law enforcement coordination. However, one thing is clear: the larger the number BRL 5.89 billion, the harder it is for policymakers to continue ignoring the taxes missed by the illegal market. PASA's official website believes that the Brazilian gambling industry is at a critical crossroads—on one side is the exponential growth of the compliant market and the global exposure brought by the World Cup, and on the other is the underground operations eroding the tax base and consumer protection. The very presence of tax director Barreirinhas at the report has already sent a signal: the government's level of attention to this track is no longer a question of "whether to manage" but "how to manage without wasting this growth engine."
————
This article is from "PASA-Global iGaming Leader," a gambling industry news channel: https://t.me/pasa_news
Original deep channel for gambling: https://t.me/gamblingdeep
Free data reports: @pasa_research
PASA Matrix: @pasa002_bot
PASA official website: https://www.pasa.news
