Stake Brasil’s brief return to Brazil’s betting market has been cut short after a federal appeals court suspended the injunction that had allowed the licensed operator to keep taking bets despite the country’s ban on online wagering.
On October 8th, the 9th Federal Civil Court of São Paulo granted Stake a partial preliminary injunction in a writ of mandamus against Provisional Measure (MP) 1,394/2026. The order preserved the effects of the company’s fixed-odds betting authorization until October 25th, 2026. The court rejected Stake’s broader requests to operate until December 31st, 2029, when its license was due to expire, and to suspend the measure’s effects on the company entirely.
The next day, Johonsom Di Salvo, president of the Federal Regional Court of the 3rd Region (TRF3), suspended that injunction at the request of the Attorney General’s Office (AGU), Mobile Time reported.
Equal treatment argument
The AGU argued that allowing one company to operate while all other operators remained bound by the measure would create unequal treatment in the market. Di Salvo wrote that the injunction created an exceptional situation capable of compromising the coherence and effectiveness of administrative action, and said it could encourage other operators to seek the same treatment in court. Consumer protection was also cited as grounds for the suspension.
MP 1,394/2026, signed by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on September 25th, prohibits the operation, offer, intermediation and advertising of bets and online casino games across Brazil. Its constitutionality is being challenged before the Supreme Federal Court (STF) in direct unconstitutionality actions 8,024, 8,027 and 8,028. Di Salvo said isolated judicial exceptions while that review is pending could create legal uncertainty.
In a statement to customers on October 10th, Stake Brasil said bets settled by October 9th would be paid as normal, open bets would be cancelled and refunded, and available balances would be transferred automatically to accounts registered under each customer’s tax number.
The ban has already reduced activity sharply. Search data showed Brazilian iGaming demand fell 20.1 percent after the measure took effect.
