The Federal Court’s decision, taken on Monday (13 January), enables Esportes da Sorte Group to launch its Esportes da Sorte and OnaBet brands nationally in Brazil, even though it has not been granted a federal licence or provisional licence to operate in the legal online betting market.
On 3 January Federal Supreme Court minister André Mendonça passed a preliminary ruling to ban Rio de Janeiro State Lottery (Loterj) licensees from providing nationwide gambling activities.
Esportes da Sorte gained Loterj authorisation back in August 2024 after its owner, Esportes Gaming Brazil, became the controlling shareholder of Loterj-licensed platform owner ST Soft.
However, the new Federal Court ruling guarantees Esportes da Sorte will be granted special authorisation to operate nationally through an order in the Official Gazette of the Union, which must be published within 72 hours from Monday’s preliminary decision.
In a statement shared with BNL Data, Esportes da Sorte said the ruling proved the company was compliant with the country’s gambling regulations.
“The decision confirms that the company, from the beginning, complied with all legal and regulatory procedures established by the legislation and its respective ordinances,” Esports da Sorte explained.
“In view of this, Grupo Esportes da Sorte reaffirms its commitment to regulating the sector and to responsible gaming, aiming to protect the interests of civil society, generating jobs, income and favouring the economic, social and cultural development of the country.”
Why was Esportes da Sorte previously banned in Brazil?
In September, Esportes da Sorte owner Darwin Henrique da Silva Filho and his wife were arrested during ‘Operation Integration’, an investigation into allegations of money laundering and illegal betting.
Despite Esportes da Sorte protesting its innocence, it was initially left off the SPA’s list of operators approved to continue operating their betting products between 1 October and 31 December 2024, rendering its activities illegal.
However, it was added to the SPA’s approved register once the owner acquired controlling shares in Loterj-licensed ST Soft.
At the conclusion of the SPA’s transition period in December Esportes da Sorte was once again deemed illegal after it was left off the SPA’s list of 14 initial licensees, as well as the 52 companies granted provisional authorisation, ahead of the market launch on 1 January.
The SPA rejected Esportes da Sorte’s request to operate because of the allegations made in Operation Integration.
However, Article 5 of Brazil’s constitution states “no one shall be considered guilty before the criminal conviction becomes final and unappealable”.
Therefore, with no criminal convictions yet made, the Federal Court has decided to grant Esportes da Sorte’s request for authorisation to operate throughout Brazil. The ruling also guarantees the SPA cannot grant any additional obstacles to Esportes da Sorte’s operations, at least until a potential conviction is handed down.
“The reason Esportes’ rejection was considered illegal by the federal court is that it has already paid the licence fee and its website will soon be transitioning to the new domain www.esportesdasorte.bet.br,” Esportes da Sorte added.
Esportes da Sorte sponsorships able to continue
Alongside Esportes da Sorte, the Federal Court ruling will also be a relief to football clubs such as Corinthians and Grêmio which are sponsored by the operator.
The exclusion of Esportes da Sorte from the legal betting market would’ve caused a real issue for the clubs in question, with Normative Ordinance No 1,231 allowing only licensed companies to sponsor sports teams.
Athletico Paranaense halted its sponsorship deal with the company last year when Esportes was left off the list of operators approved to operate ahead of the legal launch. The team sought clarification on “recently reported facts”.
In contrast, Corinthians stuck by Esportes da Sorte at the time, saying: “Sport Club Corinthians Paulista reaffirms its trust in Esportes da Sorte, our sponsorship partner, which has been fully complying with the contract.”
