Brazilian law also generally considers poker a social game, so it's also legal in private settings like home games. The game's popularity has grown greatly over the last few years.

The city became famous for being the first city that implemented participatory budgeting. The 9th Assembly of the World Council of Churches was held in Porto Alegre in 2006. Since 2000, Porto Alegre also hosts one of the world's largest free software events, called FISL.