Short of cash, Brazil’s government may end its gambling prohibition
The illegal sort takes in more than the drugs trade
IN 1946 THE glitzy Copacabana Palace hotel in Rio de Janeiro spun its last roulette wheel. That April Eurico Dutra, Brazil’s president, banned games of chance, shutting casinos, betting shops and bingo halls. Soon such places may reopen. On July 24th the current president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, issued a provisional decree to regulate sports-betting websites, which until now have operated in a legal grey area. This is the first step, perhaps, in a process that will allow all sorts of gambling.
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This article appeared in the The Americas section of the print edition under the headline “Rio roulette ”
From the September 16th 2023 edition
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