UFC President Dana White is attempting to put a rear naked chokehold on the 90% limit on gambling loss deductions.
In a letter to President Donald Trump — and as first reported by Dustin Gouker on X — White implored the president to lean on Congress to change the cap.
“I believe Congress should fix this issue as the policy is already creating problems,” White wrote. “The current law makes it irrational to bet in the United States because you could end up owing taxes even when you lose or having a tax bill that exceeds your winnings for the year.”
White is echoing the concerns of a nation of gamblers, as the 90% deduction — which was made law after Congress passed and Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) last year — would effectively make any form of gambling impossible to turn into a career or successful hobby.
The math is stark: A gambler who bets $1 million and cashes out $1.1 million would not be taxed on the $100,000 of profit; instead they would only be allowed to deduct 90% of their losses, effectively having to pay taxes on $200,000.
It’s predictably even worse if that same gambler simply broke even. At that point, they’d be paying taxes on $100,000 of phantom income.
“The UFC supports a healthy, legal sports betting market to drive fan engagement, broadcast value, and sponsorships,” White said. “When legal betting is discouraged, it hurts the ecosystem we’ve spent years building in partnership with state regulators and licensed operators. It also undercuts the transparency and integrity protections that legal betting provides for professional sports.”
White knows from what he speaks.
Earlier this week, he claimed he caught a UFC fighter throwing a match.
History lesson
The 90% cap landed in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act almost as an afterthought, as it was a last-minute Senate Finance Committee insertion shepherded by Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo that even some senators who voted for the package later claimed they didn’t know was in there. Fixing it has become a bipartisan rallying point that, so far, nobody can quite land.
Rep. Dina Titus (D-Nev.) introduced the FAIR BET Act within days of OBBBA’s signing. Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.) followed with the WAGER Act. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) ran the FULL HOUSE Act in the Senate. Reps. Steven Horsford (D-Nev.) and Max Miller (R-Ohio) piled on with their own House version last winter.
The bills have gone precisely nowhere. Titus tried bolting the fix onto the defense budget, and it was blocked. She tried again with an amendment to an appropriations bill in January, which was also blocked.
Which leaves White writing letters to the president. Given the cast of characters involved, that may actually be the most efficient legislative path available.
Worth noting: White and the UFC will be bringing their traveling show to the South Lawn of the White House on June 14.
“Fixing this deduction issue would send a strong signal that the United States supports common-sense regulation,” White wrote in closing. “You’ve always stood up for fighters, fans, and American businesses. This is another opportunity to do exactly that.”
