The Brazilian senate vote, which was originally set for 2pm local time (5pm GMT) on 6 December, has been postponed until Tuesday, 12 December.
 The odds of its approval this year, according to Brazil's bookmakers, have dropped significantly.

 The law to regulate gambling in Brazil was still up for consideration, but senators couldn't vote on it since a quorum wasn't met.

 The vote could not proceed since the bill's approval was in jeopardy because the required number of senators did not cast ballots.

 Causes of the postponement
 The business community anticipated a quick senate plenary vote after the approval of Bill 3,626 by Brazil's Economic Affairs Commission (CAE) two weeks ago.  However, that has not transpired.

 The anticipated vote in the Senate Plenary for November 29th was postponed until December due to the addition of over a hundred amendments to the bill.

 Fifteen influential senators were in the United Arab Emirates for the United Nations Climate Summit (COP28), which is the main cause of the postponement.  Until early tomorrow Monday, the summit will go on.

 Since there is no unanimous agreement on the measure in the Senate, a qualified quorum is necessary for the vote.  Because of this, the bill's adoption is in jeopardy if senators who support the idea are not present.

 For Brazil's regulatory landscape, what does this mean?
 The consequences can be far-reaching if this vote is postponed as well.  With just two weeks remaining before legislative break, the postponement poses the greatest threat.  Starting on December 23rd, this will run until February 2nd, 2024.

 The measure needs to be enacted in 2023 in order to have the funding for it included in the 2024 budget.

 The Brazilian chamber of deputies has one week and two days to adopt the revisions, even though the vote is tentatively scheduled for next Tuesday.  Senator Angelo Coronel first proposed these last week.

 If the Senate gives its approval on December 12, the House of Representatives will have just one week to consider and adopt the modifications before the end of the parliamentary year.

 Has the industry reached a consensus?
 Brazilian lawyer Luiz Felipe Maia, who co-founded the company Maia Yoshiyasu Advogados, is certain that regulation is on the horizon.

 We are getting closer to regulation, I truly feel," Maia says.  As a matter of fact, I think the bill's approval is imminent.  One crucial component that was missing from earlier endeavours: the support of the government.

 Despite the anticipated advantages for the government and sports, according to Maia, the regulation will have the greatest impact on players.  He thinks the delays are normal and expected.

 "In the senate, COP28 led to multiple absences," he goes on to say.  Nobody wants to take a chance in the vote, even the government and bill supporters.  Opponents are also attempting to obstruct it, with the goal of excluding internet gaming.

 "While it may be annoying, it is an inevitable aspect of our democratic system."

 In 2023, will gambling be legal?
 Perhaps the most important part of Brazil's budget for 2024 is the Betting Bill.  The Brazilian legal firm Montgomery & Associados's founder and managing partner, Neil Montgomery, concurs.

 When it comes to the 2024 budget, the federal government is relying on the Betting Bill.  He adds that the federal government intends to receive BRL1.6 billion in taxes on top of the BRL30 million licence fee.

 On the other hand, Montgomery doubts that this can be accomplished before Congress goes into recess on 22 December.

 It is unlikely that there will be enough time to pass it this year, considering how little time is left before Congress goes into recess, which begins on 23 December and concludes on 1 February 2024.  The fact that the Betting Bill must go back to the House of Representatives is a major factor, he said.

 We now need to know if the Betting Bill has any chance of making it back to the House of Representatives within the next 10 days after next week's vote.  We may thank the hundred changes that senators made to the bill on November 29th for this.

 After the House of Representatives gives its stamp of approval, it must next pass muster with President Lula's office.

 At this point in time, what is the status of regulation in Brazil?
 Montgomery expresses his pessimism about the Betting Bill's chances of being approved and enacted before ICE London 2024, despite his optimism about the progress towards Brazil's legislation.

 But if the bill language remains unchanged from its previous iteration, there are several advantages to consider.

 "The federal government wins because it will finally be in a position to collect taxes and licence fees, and have such additional revenues contributed to the budget," adds Montgomery. 

 Many official positions will be able to be filled thanks to market regulation as well.  To attract FDI and set up shop in Brazil, the bulk of operators—who are foreign nationals—will need to do two things.

 The 20% Brazilian ownership is the only negative aspect of this, and I really hope it is not allowed in the end.  While it's unfortunate that they'll also have to pay municipal taxes, Montgomery argued that the decrease in the GGR tax from 18% to 12% was a positive development.

 The decreased winnings income tax will also help the players.  Operators' physical presence is also going to be helpful.  Reason being, if issues emerge, they will have someone close by to "knock on" as necessary.

 "This is going to lead to more lawsuits in Brazil, which is bad news for suppliers—particularly when it comes to consumer protection."

 Understanding Brazil's regulations through context
 There is still strong resistance to passing the law, according to Montgomery.  According to him, this is the main cause of the holdup.

 The inclusion of internet gambling in the Betting Bill has recently drawn increased attention from the opponents.  Its initial scope was narrowly focused on sports betting with fixed odds.  Although it does not surprise me, it does disappoint me that there is still hope for attending ICE next year despite the lack of tangible progress emanating from Brazil.

 There was resistance to include igaming in the past.  It was first authorised last month as part of Bill 3,626 by Brazil’s Economic Council (the CAE).

 The current version of Bill 3,636 is the result of multiple revisions.  Provisional Measure (PM) No. 1,182 was signed into law by Brazil's president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, in July of this year.

 These measures were put into effect by Law No. 13,756 of 2018, which amended the tax rate and imposed marketing limitations on sports betting.

 With this vote came changes to the tax rate, a contentious part of the legislation.  At first, this was set at 18%, which caused a tremendous uproar in the business.