The American Gaming Association (AGA) reported a 22% increase in illegal gambling in the United States since 2022. It is estimated that approximately one-third of the entire U.S. gambling market comes from illegal platforms.
The table below shows a comparison of legal and illegal revenue since the last AGA report in 2022.
| Type of Gambling Revenue | Estimated Total Revenue (since 2022) |
|---|---|
| Legal | $115.1 billion |
| Illegal | $53.9 billion |
| Total | $169 billion |
With illegal betting making up 31.9% of total market share, that has resulted in $15.3 billion in lost tax revenue for states, which could have been used on education and infrastructure.
AGA President and CEO Bill Miller states that illegal gambling operators are “siphoning billions in tax revenue from state government” and that “it’s time for a national crackdown” on this market.
This table takes a deeper dive on the illegal gaming market, looking at sports betting, online casinos, and unregulated slot machines (commonly found in bars):
| Market | Estimated Revenue |
|---|---|
| Sports Betting (both offshore sportsbooks and bookies) | $5 billion |
| Online Casino | $18.6 billion |
| Unregulated Machines | $30.3 billion |
Online casinos were the most active platform for the unregulated market, taking in $466.2 billion in estimated handle, which is the amount of money wagered. Meanwhile, unregulated machines generated about $30.3 billion in revenue despite a much smaller handle of $123.4 billion.
Illegal offshore sportsbooks and bookies took in approximately $84 billion in total wagers during this timeframe. This has resulted in a call-to-action against such operators.
Back in July, the Tennessee Wagering Council fined five offshore sportsbooks $250,000 for operating without a license.
More recently, there was a collective effort from 50 attorneys general to push the U.S. Department of Justice to take action against offshore operators. In their letter, they wrote about the effects of these offshore platforms. Not only are they taking away state tax revenue that can be used on important policies that help U.S. citizens, but they can be linked to money laundering and other criminal activity.
Throughout this push to shut down these offshore sportsbooks within the United States, it remains to be seen if this will have an effect on illegal gaming activity within the country.
