Jogo do bicho

Jogo do bicho (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈʒogu du ˈbiʃu], "animal game") is an illegal gambling game in Brazil, prohibited by federal law since 1946, but nevertheless very popular throughout the country. It is a lottery-type drawing, operated on a regional basis using the daily state lottery draw, by criminals known as bicheiros, banqueiros ("bankers"), or contraventores. Despite its popularity, especially in Rio de Janeiro, it is illegal in 25 of the 26 states of Brazil plus the Federal District and those involved may be prosecuted. Paraíba is the only state where the game is legal and regulated by the state, even though federal law prohibits gambling. Unlike most state-operated lotteries, in jogo do bicho any amount can be wagered.

According to an estimate in the mid-1990s the game involved over US$2 billion a year and employed about 50,000 people in Rio de Janeiro and provided income to 400,000 people in Brazil as a whole. A study by the Getúlio Vargas Foundation estimated that illegal gambling generated between R$ 1.3 billion and R$ 2.8 billion (US$ 550 millon and US$ 1.2 billion) in Brazil in 2014 — a figure that some considered to be an underestimate — which would make the game one of the biggest illegal lotteries in the world.