Lula Wins Brazil Election, Leaving Gambling Operators Facing Four More Years Of Uncertainty

Lula’s reelection has left Brazil’s gambling operators wondering whether they will be allowed back into a market they spent millions entering. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has won a fourth term with 51.79% of the vote, defeating Flávio Bolsonaro, who received 48.21%, according to Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court (TSE). But the result offers little reassurance to gambling companies shut out of the country since September. Lula’s victory on Oct. 25 follows his government’s Sept. 25 decision to ban online sports betting and casino gaming , effectively shutting down a regulated market that his own administration helped establish.