2025 Gambling and gaming study

Millions of people across North America wager money online every day, placing bets on sporting events, taking part in casino-type games and wagering in prediction markets, even as online gambling and gaming straddles the line of ethics and legality across the country. 

Some states allow it fully. Others have restrictions. Some ban it outright. Some organizations, like Better Business Bureau (BBB), provide ethical standards to follow regarding games of chance, disclosures and conditions.

This nascent industry’s growth is expected to explode in the coming years. At least one estimate for 2025 puts the size of the online gaming industry in the US at $103 billion. That number is expected to increase to nearly $170 billion within five years. While the online gambling market in Canada is smaller, it is still expected to top $15 billion this year.

With billions of dollars flowing globally, a risky underbelly of pseudo-gambling, illegal gambling, and outright scams has developed. Because of the sophistication of these impostors, bad actors and scammers, it can be hard for people to tell the difference between a legitimate bookmaker, casino or betting company and those seeking to deceive or steal from the public.

Since 2022 to mid-2025, BBB has received nearly 200 scam reports and over 10,000 business complaints related to online gambling and gaming. In scam reports, consumers told BBB stories about theft, while complaints showed a pattern of unclear terms and misunderstanding, leading some consumers to lose tens of thousands of dollars.

To better prepare the public for engaging with the online gambling and gaming industry, this study seeks to define different types of games online, lays out the legality of the different structures and offers to help consumers and legitimate businesses navigate an uncertain and quickly changing landscape.

While gambling can be a fulfilling form of entertainment, it is important to weigh the risks before deciding to bet. Those interested in gambling must be 21 years of age in the US and 18 in Canada Anyone who believes they or someone they know may have an issue with gambling in the US or Canada should reach out to local resources for guidance.

The explosion of online gambling, especially in advertisements around sporting events, has introduced many across North America to using the internet to wager cash. Despite its ubiquity on television and online, gambling remains tightly regulated throughout both the United States and Canada.

The complex web of state, provincial and territorial laws governing sports betting go back to two pivotal moments for the United States and Canada.

In 2017, the United States Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PAPSA), effectively returning the legality of sports betting back to individual states. Since then, a patchwork of laws, especially around sports betting, have been put into place in many states, making it legal to wager on sporting events online. As of August 2025, many states, 17, still ban all types of online gambling, and many who allow it still require sportsbooks and online casinos to register with the state.

In 2021, Canada legalized online gambling federally. Like the US, Canadian officials left it to the provinces and territories to decide how to regulate online gambling. While the industry has grown significantly, many provinces operate their own gaming platforms, while others allow outside companies.

The World Lottery Association (WLA) provides a code of conduct for members around the globe, which it uses to maintain fairness in its members’ games.

Nearly every state in America does have a lottery, however, with only five states banning the practice. These are run by individual states, with varying laws for each. A consortium of states called the Multi-State Lottery Association, run the Powerball and Mega Millions lotteries, which function as a de facto national contest.

It is important to understand local laws and regulations before attempting to do any form of online gambling. This patchwork of laws can be confusing for consumers, especially when traveling or accessing platforms across state borders. Without realizing it, someone may engage in activities that are lawful in one state but illegal in another, creating legal and regulatory risks. The public should be especially wary because many illicit casinos and sportsbooks operate in this grey area and offer no protection or customer support if something goes wrong.

For example, Bovada, an offshore online sportsbook and casino, is one of the most popular sites in the world operating within this grey area. Bovada, known as Bodog in other countries, dealt with a spate of legal troubles in the mid-2010s when online gambling was still illegal throughout the US. The site persists, with an active online community. One statistic listed on the company’s website shows millions of posts and likes within its community forums.

The quasi-legal status of the website reveals the minefield of regulations one must consider when choosing a gambling website. Several states that allow online gambling in at least some form, like Illinois, Massachusetts and Michigan, issued cease-and-desist letters to Harp Media B.V., the Curacaobased company operating Bovada’s US-facing website. The company followed those bans, stopping users from accessing the website. But some states, which don’t allow any online gambling, have yet to explicitly ban Bovada, and the company continues to allow residents to sign up.

In May, one woman in Carrollton, Texas reported to BBB Scam Tracker, alleging she encountered a malfunction within a slots game, which caused the amount of her bets to increase without her input. In the end, she lost $25,000. She contacted support to request a review, but the site closed and banned her account without replying.

“This appears retaliatory and unprofessional,” she told BBB. Because the site is not licensed in the United States, she has no legal recourse. 

Another consumer said she did not realize Bovada was based outside of the US. She deposited money without issue, and when she won, she received a check. However, her bank wouldn’t allow her to deposit the check, as it did not have a routing or account number.

“I contacted Bovada, and they didn’t want to resolve this issue or refund me my money,” she said.

In a statement to the BBB, a press officer for the North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries said, “Illegal gambling websites and other grey market gambling offerings can pose serious risks to consumers because they operate outside the protections of regulated markets. These unlicensed operators are not subject to the same standards for fairness, transparency, or responsible gaming, and they offer no guarantees when it comes to safeguarding personal data or paying out winnings.”

The type of online gambling available to consumers is heavily dependent on its legality, especially in the US, as states have various rules and consumer protections depending on the type of wager.

Complaints to BBB about online gaming and casinos have increased as more gambling is allowed. Many complaints revolve around uncertain terms and conditions, and consumers expressed concern that they didn’t understand what type of situation they were dealing with when they originally chose to do business with the company.

One man, in Sugarland, Texas, told BBB in January that he used a sports betting website and application called Fye Fantasy and won about $130. When he went to withdraw his funds, he was told it would arrive within 21 days. Over three months later, the check still hadn’t come.

As of July, Fye Fantasy’s website has been taken down. Since sports betting is not yet legal in Texas, the man has no recourse for recovering his funds.

The American Gaming Association, which advocates for casinos and the gambling industry, takes a strong stance against quasi-legal gaming. It has a code of conduct for members that revolves around practices such as responsible gaming and advertising. The organization only covers legal gambling, and offshore sportsbook don’t fall under its purview. 

In a statement, AGA Vice President Alex Costello said, “These predatory websites—which rely on cryptocurrency and employ no ... safeguards—pose the most significant risk of gambling-related financial crimes. The federal government must prioritize enforcement against these bad actors to protect American consumers and the U.S. financial system.”

To help consumers navigate this world, BBB has compiled resources on the different types of legal gambling in the US and Canada.

If someone you know has talked about bets on a game, say a football match, they were discussing sports betting. Online sportsbooks have furiously grown since the US legalized sports betting, and the proliferation of sports betting permeated most of the major sports leagues.

Sports fans may recognize the “odds” presented next to sports schedules. Bettors can also place money on the outcomes of an individual athlete's performance, among many other things. Many states have been much more willing to legalize sports betting versus iGaming. It is available in 33 states and every Canadian province.

As previously mentioned, consumers should pay careful attention to their state’s laws. Some states and provinces with legal sports betting restrict who can offer sports betting to their citizens.

In Florida, only one betting website is allowed. Up the coast, Virginia has 14 different licenses awarded to betting companies. Because of the varying laws, BBB recommends individuals search their state and “online sports betting licenses” to find legal options.

Grey market sportsbooks, which are not licensed in the US but continue to offer services to Americans, abound. BetUS, touting itself as “America’s favorite sportsbook,” is one such company. Like Bovada, some states have ordered the company to stop doing business in their states, but the practice remains widespread.

In California, one man reported to BBB that he placed a wager with BetUS. Upon completion, the company said he had lost, but when he looked at the result, it was a different wager than what he put his money on. “I have noticed this issue happen several times before,” he said. “This is a rip-off.”

Consumers complain about many of these companies to BBB, citing withdrawal problems, account terminations and seizing of funds. SidePrize LLC, which does business as PrizePicks, had almost 500 complaints in the last three years for similar issues, and its quasi-legal status adds another layer of confusion for consumers.

In New York, where sports betting is legal, consumers are not allowed to use PrizePicks as a paid service, after a $15 million settlement with the state barred it from operating, calling it an unlicensed gambling company. The company continues to operate as a free-to-play service and will be allowed to apply for a license in the future.

If online sports betting consists of a small niche of online gambling, iGaming is the umbrella for many other types of wagering. Games that might be seen at a physical casino, such as slots, blackjack, poker and others, can be present virtually in an iGaming casino.

This type of gambling is much more restricted across North America. While Canadian provinces allowed it generally,dependent on licensure, few US states currently offer iGaming widely. Seven states – Connecticut, Delaware,Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and West Virginia – currently have provisions and granted some licenses.

Most states and provinces heavily regulate who can operate these iGaming casinos, with many only granting licenses to a handful of organizations. The states with legal iGaming have increased enforcement against companies operating illegally. As of August 2025, The Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) has issued over 100 cease-and-desist letters to unlicensed gambling websites, ordering them to stop doing business in their state.

“Illegal gambling operations pose a serious threat to Michigan residents by offering games that are neither regulated nor fair, and by providing no assurances of data security, responsible gaming tools, or guaranteed payouts,” Henry Williams, MGCB executive director, said in a statement to BBB.

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario maintains an online list of all licensed companies in the province. It urges social media sites to stop accepting ads for illegal gambling operators, name checking Bodog, known as Bovada in the US.

While iGaming sites explicitly offer casino-like opportunities on websites and applications, a vast network of so-called “social games” mimic things like slots and card games, without the cash prize associated.

Across all types of iGaming and sports betting, consumer reports to BBB expressed frustration with unclear terms and confusing rules. While many of these complaints ultimately fall short of deception, the pattern of repeated issues related to withdrawals, account closures, freezing of funds and similar issues show a disconnect between players and purveyors.

Social games, also called social casinos, offer games like poker, slots, roulette, bingo, and many other casino-style games online. The key, however, is these companies offer a chance to play these games for free, rather than risking actual money.

In social casinos, users will bet some form of in-game currency, such as coins or diamonds. While these have no actual monetary exchange value, if the player hits a winning combination in slots or wins a game of poker, they will “win” more coins, depending on how much they bet. If a player runs out of their allotted currency, they usually must wait a period until they are granted more, or they can buy more to continue playing.

Since its emergence, the industry has grown to a multi-billion one, with one estimate for 2028 topping $11 billion. With no gambling taking place, these games are legal across the US.

Sweepstakes games, which appear similar in nearly every aspect to social games, are also free to play but offer real cash prizes. Like social casinos, if players run out of coins, they are able to buy more tokens to play. Like social games, sweepstakes are legal in almost every state, because they fall under the broader “sweepstakes” laws rather than gambling. This comparison between sweepstakes like a raffle, and these casino style games, has prompted discussions about the businesses.

A few places, such as Washington and Idaho have banned them. Others like Illinois and West Virginia are considering similar restrictions. These types of games have come under broader scrutiny as well.

 Earlier this year, a federal jury awarded nearly $25 million to Washington consumers who played High 5 Casino and High 5 Vegas. The lawsuit against the mobile apps, branded as social games, brought claims of illegal gambling.

The judge in the case agreed, determining that the defendants were liable for damages, calling the games “illegal gambling.”

Huuuge Casino, was subject to a class action lawsuit, where plaintiffs made claims of illegal gambling, and deceptive advertising under California and Illinois law. As a part of the settlement, the company agreed to give “diamonds”, the game’s currency, to the plaintiffs.

Gambling scams are relatively new but reports to BBB and other agencies around the world are increasing. BBB released consumer guidance on sports betting scams, which shows the common frauds consumers found when trying to find an online sportsbook.

iGaming has seen an increase in “man-in-the-middle" cyberattacks, where a scammer positions themself between a user and a legitimate service to manipulate conversations. In Canada, gaming is an incredibly vulnerable industry when it comes to scams, with one of the highest fraud rates of any type measured by TransUnion.

One study on fake gambling ads, mostly focused overseas, found over 500 deceptive ads and more than 1,300 malicious websites. While the analysis mostly focused on Egypt, over 16% of the ads were found in different parts of the world.

BBB found several instances of email phishing attempts – many of which appeared to be looking for access to payment apps like CashApp and Venmo. While some of the attempts were fabricated casinos or websites, others imitated legitimate businesses.

Payment app companies are aware of scams and working to educate users about common frauds they may encounter.

Scammers can easily create fake applications and websites in minutes. BBB found nearly 50 casino and gaming application templates online; some being sold for as little as $14. The easy access to these types of resources means scammers can quickly launch new websites, even if others are taken down.

In addition to utilizing BBB Scam Tracker, there are other resources available to check in the legitimacy of unknown websites. The WLA recommends consumers perform a website check at a site like Get Safe Online or ScamAdviser. 

The AGA compiled one of the few reports on the scale of unregulated and illegal gambling, based on a survey of over 5,000 Americans in 2022. The organization estimates that Americans wager over $510.9 billion a year with illegal and unregulated operators, with sports betting and iGaming comprising over 78% percent of the total.

As laws around legal and illegal gambling clarify, especially in the United States, there has been a crackdown on illegal gambling.

After a case brought by the Department of Justice (DOJ), a California man pleaded guilty to running an illegal gambling business online, concealing over $13 million in income. The man then laundered his money through real estate and gold. As a part of his plea deal, the man agreed to pay $10 million. He could still face up to five years in prison.

In July, a federal court sentenced Anthony Villani, a member of an organized crime family, to 21 months in prison, after he was convicted in connection with running an illegal online gambling ring. Federal authorities said the racket took in over $35 million in illicit profits. Villani, a captain in the Luchese organized crime family, was ordered to pay $4 million in restitution. Four other co-defendants pleaded guilty, and they agreed to pay an additional $1 million.

While many illegal online gambling sites may claim to be legitimate other than their licensure, the Villani case shows how groups operating in the shadows can turn dangerous. An anonymous man, called John Doe in the lawsuit, claimed Villani threatened him bodily harm for failure to pay.