iPoker Not Subject To Brazilian Public Gambling Ban

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Friday, September 11th, 2015 | Written by Stephen Smith

Many poker players today use their smartphones and tablets to play online, and often they enjoy quick games when they’re out and about and have some time to kill. It’s a simple pleasure that doesn’t cause anyone harm, which is why there was such a strong reaction when poker players in Brazil were led to believe that tapping an app or navigating to an online poker site on a smartphone or tablet in public could now be considered a crime. It turns out, though, that Brazilian poker players have nothing to fear at all, leading to a collective sigh of relief in cities throughout the South American nation.

Panic Ensues Over Changes to Law

The panic over the possible illegal nature of using a mobile device to play poker in a public area in Brazil began in early August. That’s when the media picked up on a story over a new change to the misdemeanor laws of Brazil called Lei das Contravencoes Penais (1941). Recently, the Brazilian legislature introduced new language to Article 50 of the statutes, and one particular line is what caused the trouble. The new wording stated that anyone who was gambling in public using the Internet or any other method of communication would be in violation of the law and subject to a fine ranging from 2,000 to 2 million Brazilian real. In American currency, that’s roughly $560 to $560,000.

Putting Things in Perspective

It’s easy to understand why online poker players panicked over the change to the law. When viewed in isolation without any background into the legality of gambling in Brazil, it does seem as if using your mobile device in a public place to play poker would be punishable by law. However, when you understand the background, it becomes clear that poker players can still play mobile games without fear. Initially, this part of the misdemeanor law was created to keep people from just setting up games of chance in the street, and as Ari Aguiar of ESPN Brazil pointed out soon after the story broke:

“That [original] law is from 1941, and not specific for poker games. That law says that you can’t set up a table in the middle of the street and play blackjack. Of course, you can’t set up a table on the street and play poker, but you can’t play any other card games either.”

Poker a Game Of Skill

Furthermore, the new wording specifically states that the law applies only to games that award money based on luck or chance. This excludes poker from the definition, as the Brazilian Ministry of Sports classifies poker as a sport, and not a game of chance. This is because Brazil considers poker to be more of a competitive game in which you must use intellectual reasoning and intelligence to win. Consequently, the law would not apply to online poker played on a laptop or a mobile device in a public space.

Poker is currently experiencing a boom in the country of 200 million people, and recently PokerStars has added further to the games popularity by sponsoring soccer stars such as Neymar Jr, and Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima to represent the site. Other PokerStars sponsored pros, such as WSOP bracelet winner André Akkari and online sensation Caio Pessagno have also inspired countless players to take up poker. Seeking to allay the concerns of Brazil’s thousands of poker players, the Brazilian Confederation of Texas Hold’em (CBTH) has now released a news release, in which CBTH CEO Igor Trafane, stated:

“Poker does not qualify in the concept of gambling displayed in Article 50 of the CML and therefore, as extensively provided in Brazilian jurisprudence, studies, reports, decisions and legal opinions.. Poker is not subject to the provisions of Article 50.”

The Reason for the Law

So why was the Article 50 changed if it wasn’t to make online poker illegal? Those with knowledge of Brazilian law and politics state that the changes were made in order to better regulate soccer clubs that may try to make money by allowing for sports betting and other types of gaming through the Internet at matches held in Brazil.

It definitely seems that Brazilian poker plays are in the clear and can “sit” at the virtual table at home or on the go without worry. Crisis averted!