Welcome to Casino Cabbie’s first “Letter From America” of the New Year, 2025.
As fireworks lit-up cities worldwide, midnight on January 31 closed what has been a monumental year for U.S. gambling – and one, according to the American Gaming Association, that generated some US$59.11 billion (£47.23bn) in the 10-months, ending October.
And with 11 of the country’s 50 states yet to legalise sports betting there’s still plenty more room for gaming growth in the nation.
Last Eleven
A new year inevitably means fresh legislative sessions and, for our delectation, a new round of online sports gambling expansion attempts in 11 U.S. states: Alabama, Alaska, California, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Minnesota, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Texas.
To date, Alabama, Hawaii, Minnesota and Texas are in the most advanced discussions. And two putative digital sports betting bills have already been pre-filed in South Carolina.
We will, of course, be monitoring developments closely.
Enough Already! Election Bet Ban
Two U.S. Democratic Representatives, Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Andrea Salinas of Oregon, are pushing for a federal ban on election betting and have introduced the “Ban Gambling on Elections Act” to Congress.
It’s estimated that more than US$930 million (£743.9m) was officially wagered on the 2024 presidential and congressional elections.
And lawmakers, opposed to betting on electoral outcomes, believing it undermines the democratic process, feel that now is the time to act.
If enacted, the legislation would amend the Commodity Exchange Act–a law regulating the trading of commodities and futures in the U.S.–to prohibit political election wagering.
Raskin commented: “With distrust in our electoral system at an all-time high, we must crack down on gambling in all U.S. elections.
“Our democracy demands reliable and transparent processes to cast ballots and tally results, not a horserace clouded by gambling odds and bets placed.”
Added Salinas: “Elections betting sets a dangerous precedent, incentivising bad actors to try and influence or interfere with our elections systems.
“We cannot play roulette with our democracy by allowing this kind of wagering without a thorough accounting of the potential consequences.”
However, with a new congress set to be sworn in today (January 3), progress for the election betting ban is uncertain.
DraftKings Xmas Class Action
A new class-action lawsuit filed in Massachusetts by a Texas resident just before Christmas accuses DraftKings–one of the U.S. online sports betting market leaders–of unfairly closing accounts and seizing consumer funds.
The lawsuit alleges that DraftKings has shut down player accounts under the pretext of compliance issues or violations of its terms of use, thus creating a so-called “Catch-22” situation, as users cannot withdraw their account balances.
The lawsuit claims that these practices violate Texan consumer protection laws. And it states that the company has restricted, and kept, “millions of dollars properly belonging to users” through these practices.
DraftKings hasn’t released a public comment yet.
But it does beg the question: “What’s the legality of a Texas resident using DraftKings in the first place?”
As we highlighted at the top of this column, online sports betting in the Lone Star state is yet to be legalised.
Curious.
Hermalyn Case Dismissed
And in more negative news for DraftKings, the company’s case against former employee Michael Hermalyn has just wrapped up. And not in their favour.
The U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts dismissed DraftKings’ case against its former senior executive for breaching the terms of his employment and concerns over him sharing insider knowledge.
The December 22 decision cannot be appealed and means Hermalyn may now continue in his new position as VIP President for Fanatics Betting and Gaming, one of DraftKings’ many rivals.
That’s all folks.
As always, watch this space. 2025. It’s going to be a bumper year!
