TRF-3 postpones trial and MegaLoterias continues operating for Mega da Virada.

The Federal Regional Court of the Third Region (TRF-3) postponed the trial that could prohibit the operation of MegaLoterias, one of the main betting intermediation sites in the country. The decision, taken on Thursday (18), allows the platform to continue operating for the next contests, including the Mega da Virada, which will draw an estimated prize of R$ 850 million on December 31.

The postponement represents another chapter in the dispute between Caixa Econômica Federal (CEF) and websites that intermediate lottery bets. As reported by Tacio Lorran in Metrópoles , Judge Mônica Nobre, of the 4th Panel of the TRF-3, postponed the analysis of the case to March 2026, when Judge Wilson Zaury, rapporteur of another case on gambling intermediation, is expected to participate in the session.

The judge granted a stay of execution to the first instance decision, which had ordered the interruption of the intermediation services. With this, MegaLoterias can continue its operations while the court analyzes the appeal filed by the company.

Caixa maintains that these websites are illegally operating games for which the bank holds an exclusive license, in addition to using its trademarks without authorization. The platforms, in turn, argue that they only facilitate bettors' access to official games.

The Ministry of Finance's Prize and Betting Secretariat has taken a favorable stance towards intermediary websites. "What we observe is that the platforms do not sell their own tickets, but register them with lottery units authorized by CEF [Caixa Econômica Federal]. As already mentioned, there is no regulation or express prohibition on the intermediary activity carried out by the platforms in collecting bets, since CEF is responsible for the administration of federal lotteries," says a document prepared by the ministry.

In its defense before the TRF-3 (Regional Federal Court of the 3rd Region), Caixa (the Brazilian state-owned bank) stated that its lottery activity "does not aim to generate profits," arguing that the main income is destined for social programs. However, the financial institution's balance sheets show that the lottery sector obtained a net profit of R$ 68,55 million in the first half of 2025 alone.

The bank's policy for the sector establishes that "shareholders [of Caixa] are guaranteed the right to receive, as a mandatory dividend, in each fiscal year, at least 25% of the adjusted net profit."

The final ruling is scheduled for March 2026, when the court will review the appeal filed by MegaLoterias. Until then, this platform and others like it, such as Sorte Online (the largest site in the sector), will continue to operate normally.

The dispute is taking place within the jurisdiction of the TRF-3 (Regional Federal Court of the 3rd Region), which has jurisdiction over the states of São Paulo and Mato Grosso do Sul, although the intermediary platforms operate throughout Brazil, offering online services to bettors from different regions.

When contacted for comment, Caixa stated that it does not comment on ongoing legal proceedings.