The U.S. sports betting world moves quickly and unpredictably in 2025. In order to properly take stock of it all, we offer InGame’s “EndGame,” an end-of-week compilation of the top storylines, some overlooked items, and all the other news bits from this past week that we found interesting.
Fantasy group: Californians want fantasy contests
The Coalition for Fantasy Sports (CFS) isn’t ruling out the possibility of a legislative fix or going to voters if California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office offers an opinion saying that fantasy contests are illegal in the state. Per a Saturday Down South report Thursday, CFS Executive Director JT Foley said 75% of those polled between May 6-11 are in favor of legal fantasy contests. One thousand registered voters were polled by Global Strategy Group.
A Sacramento TV station reported Thursday that Bonta’s office is close to issuing an opinion on the question of the legality of fantasy contests. Companies offering fantasy contests in California currently do so in a gray area, meaning that it is not explicitly legal or illegal. But California’s tribes have exclusivity for gaming in the state, and they say that fantasy contests infringe on their rights. The pending opinion request was submitted in 2023.
Despite California’s tribes spending $250 million to kill a commercially led legal sports betting initiative attempt in 2022, Foley said that his group has been “looking at” that option. He also said that he’s hopeful that the state legislature will work with fantasy operators to craft regulations and a tax structure in the state.
The CFS is comprised of Betr, PrizePicks, Underdog, Dabble Fantasy, and Splash.
3 Californians sue DraftKings
Per the website TopClassActions.com, three California fantasy players filed a class-action lawsuit against DraftKings, claiming the company misrepresented its legality in California. As noted above, daily fantasy sports contests currently operate in a gray area in the state.
Companies, including DraftKings, offering fantasy contests do not currently pay state taxes and are not subject to state regulation.
The three men are hoping to build a class of California bettors who played in fantasy contests, meaning that other operators could be added to the lawsuit.
Jill R. Dorson
States raise taxes as online sports betting grows …
Many states are raising taxes on online sports betting as the industry grows. A Kiplinger report published Sunday identified nine states that passed or proposed bills to raise taxes for online sports betting in 2025.
Colorado signed a law blocking sportsbooks from deducting “free bets” from their taxable revenue, Illinois added a tax-per-wager of 25 cents for the first 20 million bets and 50 cents for those beyond that, Louisiana lawmakers increased that state’s digital betting tax by 6.5%, and Maryland raised its online sports betting from 15% to 20%. Louisiana’s new law takes effect Aug. 1, and the new laws in the other three states take effect July 1.
In New Jersey, an increase from 13% to 19.75% is in the proposed state budget. Gov. Phil Murphy is expected to sign the budget by Monday.
Massachusetts, North Carolina, Ohio, and Wyoming all have proposed bills that would significantly raise the tax on online sports betting, some even doubled.
But tax hikes don’t always equal more tax dollars
Over at NewsMax, policy analyst Bill Wirtz lays out (again) all the reasons that higher taxes on sports betting operators don’t get states what they crave — more tax dollars. Rather, high tax rates and tougher guidelines (like affordability checks) typically send players to the black market.
Betway investor class action settled for $12 million
A group of executives — including NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell’s brother — will pay $12 million to investors to settle a lawsuit related to the deal that took Betway owner Super Group public in 2022, Bloomberg reported Monday.
Super Group listed on the New York Stock Exchange via a merger with Special-Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC). SPACs are “blank check” businesses — with assets but no normal operations — that merge with existing companies in order to allow that company to list on a stock exchange without having to go through the IPO process. They were a popular investment vehicle between 2020 and 2022, but the results for their investors have been mixed at best.
Super Group shares plunged during the company’s first year on the market, as Betway failed to gain any notable foothold in the U.S. Betway ultimately left the U.S. market in 2024.
The class action suit filed by investors — settled on June 18 — claims that the executives behind the SPAC, including Timothy Goodell and New York Islanders co-owner John Collins, were incentivized to find a merger partner without regard for whether it was a good deal because they received “founder shares” that would only be valuable if a merger partner was found.
The executives continue to “deny any and all accusations of wrongdoing,” Bloomberg Law reports.
Daniel O’Boyle
Court: Tribal brief allowed in MD Kalshi lawsuit
U.S. District Court Judge Adam Abelson Thursday ordered that an amicus brief signed by 27 tribes across the country be allowed to be considered in Kalshi’s lawsuit against the state of Maryland. Among the tribes and tribal associations filing the brief are the Indian Gaming Association, California’s Pechanga Band of Mission Indians and Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation, and Florida’s Seminole Tribe.
Abelson allowed the brief writing that the groups showed “good cause” despite Kalshi’s argument that it isn’t relevant or helpful. A group of tribes also filed an amicus brief in Kalshi’s case against the state of New Jersey. In both cases, the prediction-market platform filed lawsuits after the states issued cease-and-desist letters directing the platform to shutter within their borders.
Jill R. Dorson
Coloradans love their ping pong … and cricket
From our own Chris Altruda, turns out that Coloradans are continuing their love affair with table tennis betting — it started back during Covid lockdowns — and also seem to be embracing betting on cricket.
A fun little nugget out of the Colorado May sports betting revenue report: The all-time operator gross revenue from table tennis surpassed $50 million after a record $2.9 million was claimed for the month. Monthly handle also hit an all-time high of $32.5 million.
In addition, cricket made its second appearance ever on the top 10 list with $1.2M handle.
On Thursday, Colorado Division of Gaming Director Christopher Schroeder talked about everything from what sports are popular, responsible gambling, and how wagering tax revenue is spent on KOA talk radio. Take a listen:
Jill R. Dorson
Joe Asher to launch Boomer’s Sportsbook in Nevada
Former William Hill CEO Joe Asher plans to launch Boomer’s Sportsbook in Nevada by the start of the football season. If gaming regulators approve Asher’s licensing application in July, it will become the first non-casino-owned sportsbook in Nevada.
Remaining independent of one company will allow Asher to partner with multiple casinos and create a statewide network, he explained. Most casinos in Nevada partner with one sportsbook, so having his product across multiple will give players more options. Independent sportsbooks also have more flexibility in providing more betting lines on games.
Boomer’s will primarily operate out of the Commercial Casino in Elko, which also has locations at Ellis Island near the Strip and Valle Verde Casino in Henderson, allowing Asher to comply with Nevada’s in-person registration requirement.
FanDuel opens office in New York
After 10 years being headquartered in the city, FanDuel opened a new office in New York’s Flatiron District Monday, it said via press release. New York state Sen. Joe Addabbo, FanDuel CEO Amy Howe, FanDuel President Christian Genetski, and other company executives attended the opening ceremony.
FanDuel has over 800 employees based in New York, and the company hopes to continue to reinvest in the city, Howe said in a press release.
Vegas ballpark groundbreaking a local milestone
Professional sports leagues’ collective stance on legal gambling once made it unthinkable that the NFL, NHL, NBA, or MLB would ever allow franchises to be based in Las Vegas.
Then the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) fell in 2018, allowing states to legalize sports betting and the “Big Four” to exploit a brand new revenue stream nationally. Money, as the poet Cyndi Lauper once wrote, changes everything.
Ground was broken on the city’s third major league sports venue this week, a $1.75 billion baseball park that will host the Athletics — who are squatting in Sacramento, currently — beginning in 2028.
The NHL lightened up before PASPA’s demise, awarding the Golden Knights expansion franchise in 2016. The NFL Raiders moved from Oakland to Las Vegas in 2020, and in 2023 the A’s left that Bay Area city completely barren by announcing a move there, too.
That just leaves the NBA to complete Vegas’ pro sports bingo card. It seems almost certain. The city has hosted the Summer League in some form since 2004, and NBA legend LeBron James has expressed interest in owning an expansion franchise there.
Brant James
AGA launches new RG tool
The “Play Smart Consumer Hub” launched Monday as part of the American Gambling Association’s “Play Smart from the Start” program to encourage responsible gaming. The consumer hub builds on the program by offering practical tools to help players gamble responsibly, including a pre-play checklist, an educational section, a responsible gambling quiz, and easy access to problem gambling support systems.
Bet365 partners with WNBA’s Chicago Sky
Online sportsbook bet365 is partnering with the WNBA’s Chicago Sky as their official sports betting partner, the team announced June 18. The Chicago Sky, the seventh WNBA team to partner with a sportsbook, is hopeful the brand deal will bring more popularity to the WNBA in the sports betting world.
The partnership is also a marketing strategy for bet365, as a U.K.-based company that now has platforms in 13 U.S. states. The Sky will place the company’s logo in multiple places on the court, as well as on other marketing materials and broadcasts — products, social media, in-arena promotions, and more.
G2E 2025 registration opens
The Global Gaming Expo, or G2E, opened its registration for the 2025 conference at the Venetian Expo in Las Vegas Thursday. The conference will run from Oct. 6-9. G2E is hosted by the American Gaming Association, and it serves as a hub for gaming experts around the world. Over 25,000 gaming professionals and around 400 exhibitors are expected to attend from more than 120 countries.
ICYMI on InGame
Déjà Vu All Over Again: California’s AG About To Take Aim At Fantasy Sports
NCAA To Vote On Letting Athletes, Coaches, Staff Place Bets On Professional Sports
From New Jersey To Florida: Betting On The Road Not All It’s Cracked Up To Be
State Of Florida Calls For Court To Dismiss Latest Gambling Lawsuit
Tribes Aim To Join Kalshi-Maryland Lawsuit With Amicus Brief
Hopes For Open Market In Rhode Island Die As Legislature Adjourns With No Action
