A study by the National Confederation of Traders (CNDL) and the Credit Protection Service (SPC Brasil), in partnership with Offerwise Pesquisas, revealed that Brazilians spend approximately BRL 6 billion (more than $1 billion) a month on online gaming and betting. The survey also indicated that more than 40 million people have placed some kind of bet online in the last year.

Sports betting tops the list of preferences, with 63% of respondents, followed by slots (27%), roulette (26%), physical slots (20%) and poker (18%). The frequency of gambling also stands out: 22% of players play two to three times a week, 20% once a week, and 17% monthly.

Average spending in the last month was BRL 186 ($33), with an average of BRL 267 ($47) in A/B classes. The most common payment methods are PIX (72%) and credit card (18%).

“The growth of online gambling and gaming is a wake-up call about consumer indebtedness. Many people have lost control of what they spend and this has a direct impact on the household budget. The country is going through a period of high delinquency and the scenario becomes even more worrisome with the high number of people who gamble daily,” said the President of CNDL, José César da Costa, in a statement. 

46% of those surveyed gave up some type of spending to gamble

According to the survey, 15% of respondents have already stopped paying some bills to allocate money to gambling or sports betting, and 18% have already been blacklisted as a result, with 10% remaining in this situation.

The study also highlighted that consumers spend an average of two hours a day on sports betting and gambling websites or apps. In addition, 25% of respondents admitted that they spend more than they can afford on these activities.

Almost half of the respondents (46%) claimed to have given up some consumption to gamble or bet, especially on items such as clothing, footwear and accessories (18%), Internet services (17%), family outings (16%) and eating out or eating at home (16%).

As for the impact on consumers’ social lives, 30% of respondents stated that gambling and/or sports betting had an impact on their lives, causing decreased productivity at work (11%) and debt (11%). Other problems highlighted were neglect of family responsibilities (10%) and signs of addiction, such as relief when gambling (10%) and irritation when not gambling (9%). 

Research Methodology

• Target Audience: Men and women over 18 years of age, from all socio-economic classes, who have made online purchases in the last 12 months.
• Data collection method: Quantitative survey conducted online, with subsequent weighting by gender, age, status, and income.
• Sampling: 1,117 initial contacts were made to identify individuals who had shopped online in the last 12 months. Of these, 821 responded to the full questionnaire, yielding a margin of error of 2.93 percentage points (p.p.) for the overall survey and 3.42 p.p. for specific responses, at a 95% confidence level.

The survey was conducted between June 14 and June 21, 2024.