Illegal US online gambling revenue reaches $97.4bn, report says
The study, commissioned by the Campaign for Fairer Gambling, found that illegal revenue grew faster than the regulated market.
US.- Illegal online gambling operators in the US increased revenue by 45.2 per cent in 2025, reaching $97.4bn, according to a report by Gaming Compliance International (GCI) commissioned by the Campaign for Fairer Gambling (CFG). The figure compares with a rise of 23 per cent for regulated online gambling revenue, which reached $28.3bn.
Combined online gambling losses across regulated and unregulated markets increased from $ 90.1bn in 2024 to $125.6bn in 2025, representing a 39.4 per cent increase. GCI estimates that unlicensed sites and apps accounted for 77 per cent of total US online gambling GGR, up from 74 per cent the previous year.
The report argues that the expansion of legal online sports betting and casino gaming has not reduced illegal activity, but instead has increased the overall market while unregulated operators have continued to grow.
“The legal sector uses the presence of the illicit sector to demand legalisation, then asks for low tax and regulation to compete against the illicit sector,” said Derek Webb, who funds the CFG. “Taking action against bad actors in the illicit sector is the solution and must be the priority for all stakeholders.”
Differences across state markets
GCI also compared markets using a loss ratio, which measures online gambling GGR per capita against income per capita. States with both regulated online sports betting and casino gaming recorded an average ratio of 1.38 per cent in 2025, compared with 0.99 per cent in states with sports betting only and 0.44 per cent where neither product is regulated.
Louisiana recorded the highest ratio of gambling spending to income and also the highest unregulated proportion, with most of that activity attributed to illegal operators. In West Virginia, where both products are legal, the total Loss Ratio was 1.57 per cent, including 0.87 percentage points attributed to unregulated activity.
Meanwhile, California, where neither online sports betting nor casino gaming is legal, recorded a 0.43 per cent Loss Ratio, entirely attributed to unregulated activity.
https://focusgn.com/illegal-us-online-gambling-revenue-reaches-us-97-4-bn-report-says