Gambling in the United States
In the United States, gambling is subject to a variety of legal restrictions.
In 2018, the United States Supreme Court declared a federal ban on sports gambling to be unconstitutional in Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association. In the years that followed, dozens of states legalized sports gambling. The sports gambling industry has recorded record profits year-by-year, and sports gambling has become pervasive in sports coverage.
The American Gaming Association, an industry trade group for commercial gambling, reported $66.6 billion in revenue and $14 billion in state and local taxes paid in 2023. For the same year, the National Indian Gaming Commission reported that Native American gaming operations generated $41.9 billion in revenue.
Critics of gambling argue it leads to increased political corruption, compulsive gambling, higher crime rates, and suicide. Others argue that gambling is a type of regressive tax on the individuals in local economies where gambling venues are located. Critics of sports gambling argue that it has adversely affected sports.
Authorized types
Many levels of government have authorized multiple forms of gambling in an effort to raise money for needed services without raising direct taxes. These include everything from bingo games in church basements, to multimillion-dollar poker tournaments. Sometimes states advertise revenues from certain games to be devoted to particular needs, such as education.When New Hampshire authorized a state lottery in 1963, it represented a major shift in social policy. No state governments had previously run gambling operations directly to raise money. Other states followed suit, and now the majority of states run some type of lottery to raise funds for state operations. Some states restrict this revenue to specific forms of expenditures, usually oriented toward education, while others allow lottery revenues to be spent on general government. The ethics of certain government practices have been questioned, such as using marketing firms to increase market share, or developing new programs to replace less-lucrative forms of gambling.
The American Gaming Association breaks gambling down into the following categories:
- Card rooms, both public and private
- Commercial casinos
- Charitable games and Bingo
- Tribal casinos
- Legal bookmaking
- Lotteries
- Parimutuel wagering
- Advance-deposit wagering
Legality
While gambling is legal under U.S. federal law, there are significant restrictions pertaining to interstate and online gambling, as each state is free to regulate or prohibit the practice within its borders. The Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 effectively outlawed sports betting nationwide, excluding a few states. However, on May 14, 2018, the United States Supreme Court declared the entire law unconstitutional.If state-run lotteries are included, then 48 states allow some form of gambling. The exceptions are Hawaii, where gambling was outlawed prior to statehood, and Utah, which bans gambling in its state constitution. Casino-style gambling, however, is much less widespread than lotteries. Federal law provides leeway for Native American Trust Land to be used for games of chance if an agreement is put in place between the state and the tribal government under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988.As of 2023, Louisiana and Nevada are the only states which allow casino-style gambling statewide, although both state and local governments impose licensing and zoning restrictions. All other states that allow casino-style gambling restrict it to small geographic areas, or to American Indian reservations, some of which are located in or near large cities. The only US states that do not have casinos are Hawaii, Utah, Georgia, and South Carolina.
As domestic dependent nations, American Indian tribes have used legal protection to open casinos, which has been a contentious political issue in California and other states. In some states, casinos are restricted to "riverboats", large multi-story barges that are permanently moored in a body of water.
Online gambling has been more strictly regulated: the Federal Wire Act of 1961 outlawed interstate wagering on sports, but did not address other forms of gambling; it has been the subject of court cases. The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 did not specifically prohibit online gambling; instead, it outlawed financial transactions involving online gambling service providers—some offshore gambling providers reacted by shutting down their services for US customers.
Other operators, however, have continued to circumvent UIGEA and have continued to service US customers. For this reason, UIGEA has received criticism from notable figures within the gambling industry.
In May 2025 it has been reported that Ohio lawmakers are debating Senate Bill 197, which would legalize online casino gambling and internet lottery gaming in Ohio, allowing Ohioans aged 21 and over to play games like slots and blackjack on their phones. The bill proposes that 99% of tax revenue from online gambling would go to the state's general fund, with 1% allocated to problem gambling programs, potentially generating millions in new revenue for priorities such as education and child care.
In August 2025, all 50 state attorneys general signed a letter that called on the US Attorney General to “address the rampant spread of illegal offshore gaming operations” across the United States. The letter insists asks that the DOJ uses its authority to dismantle the financial infrastructure supporting the offshore gaming operations.
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 AlabamaYes CYes CNo XNo XNo XNo XNo XNo XRecriminalizationOn July 1, 2000, a new law took effect in the state of South Carolina, whereby the ownership, possession, or operation of a video poker machine, for either commercial or personal use, became illegal. Violators are subject to prosecution and substantial fines. Through at least 2007, the only type of legalized gambling in that state is the South Carolina Education Lottery. In 2025, South Carolina was considering legislation to legalize commercial casinos in the state.TypesCommercial casinosCommercial casinos are founded and run by private or public companies. Aside from tribal lands, 24 states allow commercial casinos in some form: Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Northern Marianas Islands, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Dakota, U.S. Virgin Islands, Virginia, Washington, and West Virginia.The approximately 450 commercial casinos on non-tribal lands produced a total gross gambling revenue of $34.11 billion in 2006. Native American gamingThe history of Native American commercial gambling began in 1979, when the Seminoles began running bingo games. Prior to this, the Native Americans had no previous experience with large-scale commercial gambling. Native Americans were familiar with the concept of small-scale gambling, such as placing bets on sporting contests. For example, the Iroquois, Ojibwes, and Menominees would place bets on games of snow snake. Within six years after commercial gambling among Native Americans developed, seventy-five to eighty of the three hundred federally recognized tribes became involved. By 2006, about three hundred Native American groups hosted some sort of gaming.Some Native American tribes operate casinos on tribal land to provide employment and revenue for their government and their tribe members. Tribal gaming is regulated on the tribal, state, and federal level. Native American tribes are required to use gambling revenue to provide for governmental operations, economic development, and the welfare of their members. Federal regulation of Native American gaming was established under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988. Under the provisions of that law, games are divided into three distinct categories:
Like other Americans, many indigenous Americans have dissension over the issue of casino gambling. Some tribes are too isolated geographically to make a casino successful, while some do not want non-Native Americans on their land. Though casino gambling is controversial, it has proven economically successful for most tribes, and the [impact of Native American gambling|impact of American Indian gambling] has proven to be far-reaching. Gaming creates many jobs, not only for Native Americans, but also for non-Native Americans, and in this way can positively affect relations with the non-Native American community. On some reservations, the number of non-Native American workers is larger than the number of Native American workers because of the scale of the casino resorts. Also, some tribes contribute a share of casino revenues to the state in which they are located, or to charitable and non-profit causes. For example, the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians of California gave 4 million dollars to the UCLA Law School to establish a center for American Indian Studies. The same tribe also gave $1 million to the state for disaster relief when the area was ravaged by wildfires in 2003. Although casinos have proven successful for both the tribes and the surrounding regions, state residents may oppose construction of Native American casinos, especially if they have competing projects. For example, in November 2003, the state of Maine voted against a $650 million casino project proposed by the Penobscots and Passamaquoddies. The project's objective was to create jobs for the tribes' young people. The same day the state voted against the Indian casino project, Maine voters approved a plan to add slot machines to the state's harness racing tracks. The National Indian Gaming Commission oversees Native American gaming for the federal government. The National Indian Gaming Commission was established under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act in 1988. Under the NIGC, Class I gaming is under the sole jurisdiction of the tribe. Class II gaming is governed by the tribe, but it is also subject to NIGC regulation. Class III gaming is under the jurisdiction of the states. For instance, in order for a tribe to build and operate a casino, the tribe must work and negotiate with the state in which it is located. These Tribal-State compacts determine how much revenue the states will obtain from the Indian casinos. The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act requires that gaming revenues be used only for governmental or charitable purposes. The tribal governments determine specifically how gaming revenues are spent. Revenues have been used to build houses, schools, and roads; to fund health care and education; and to support community and economic development initiatives. Indian gaming is the first and essentially the only economic development tool available on Indian reservations. The National Gaming Impact Study Commission has stated that "no...economic development other than gaming has been found". Tribal governments, though, use gaming revenues to develop other economic enterprises such as museums, malls, and cultural centers. There are currently 30 states that have Native American gaming: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. LotteriesThe classic lottery is a drawing in which each contestant buys a combination of numbers. Plays are usually non-exclusive, meaning that two or more ticket holders may buy the same combination. The lottery organization then draws the winning combination of 5-8 numbers, usually from 1 to 50, using a randomized, automatic ball tumbler machine.To win, contestants match their combinations of numbers with the drawn combination. The combination may be in any order, except in some "mega ball" lotteries, where the "mega" number for the combination must match the ball designated as the "mega ball" in the winning combination. If there are multiple winners, they split the winnings, also known as the "Jackpot". Winnings are currently subject to federal income taxes as ordinary income. Winnings can be awarded as a yearly annuity or as a lump sum, depending on lottery rules. Most states have state-sponsored and multi-state lotteries. There are only five states that do not sell lottery tickets: Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, and Utah. In some states, revenues from lotteries are designated for a specific budgetary purpose, such as education. Other states put lottery revenue into the general fund. Multi-jurisdictional lotteries generally have larger jackpots due to the greater number of tickets sold. The Mega Millions and Powerball games are the biggest of such lotteries in terms of numbers of participating states. Scratchcard gamesSome state lotteries run games other than the lotteries. Usually, these are in the scratchcard format, although some states use pull-tab games. In either format, cards are sold that have opaque areas. In some games, all of the opaque material is removed to see if the contestant has won, and how much. In other scratchcard games, a contestant must pick which parts of a card to scratch, to match amounts or play another form of game.Sports bettingIn 1992, the U.S. Congress passed the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act. It mandated states not to legalize sports betting apart from parimutuel horse racing, dog racing and jai alai. The sports lotteries conducted in Oregon, Delaware, and Montana were exempt, as well as the licensed sports pools in Nevada. It also provided a one-year window for states which operated licensed casino gaming to legalize sports wagering, which New Jersey intended to do but did not reach the deadline.In 2018, PASPA was overturned by the Supreme Court of the United States in Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association, ruling that it conflicted with the Tenth Amendment. New Jersey, Delaware, and other states quickly drafted bills legalizing sports betting soon after. States had to determine which department would oversee state-regulated sportsbooks, usually choosing between their respective gambling commissions, lottery boards or, in the case of Kentucky, the state horse racing commission. As of September 2023, sportsbooks are legal in 38 states, the District of Columbia, and the territory of Puerto Rico. Online sports betting is also legal in 30 states, Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico. The American Gaming Association reported a 2023 handle of $121 billion and a revenue of $11.0 billion in commercial sportsbooks. This marked a significant increase from 2018, when approximately 25 million fewer Americans wagered on sporting events. A 2025 study from the University of California, Los Angeles found that the spread of legal sports betting caused consumers to take on more problematic debt and led to an increase in bankuptcies.
Gambling revenuesAccording to the Center for Gaming Research University Libraries, legal gambling revenues for 2007 were as follows:
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