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The Illegal Gambling Market in the US: Size, Types and Risks

An August 2025 industry-commissioned estimate puts illegal and unregulated U.S. gambling wagers at $673.6 billion a year—but handle, operator revenue and estimated tax loss are different measures.
From TheFinanceBase Team5 min to read
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The illegal and unregulated gambling market in the United States is not one activity, and its size depends on what is being measured. An August 2025 estimate commissioned by the American Gaming Association (AGA) puts annual wagers across illegal sports betting, illegal online casino games and unregulated machines at $673.6 billion, operator revenue at $53.9 billion, and estimated lost state tax revenue at $15.3 billion. Those are industry-commissioned estimates—not a government census—and the three figures describe different things.

What counts as illegal or unregulated gambling?

The headline estimate combines three distinct categories. Their legal status can depend on the product and the state, so “illegal gambling” should not be read as a single nationwide category with one set of rules.

  • Illegal sports betting: wagers placed through operators that are not authorized for the bettor’s jurisdiction. The AGA study estimates this segment separately from lawful sportsbooks.
  • Illegal online casino gaming: online slots and table games played through sites that are not legally authorized where the player is located. A site operating legally in another country may still be illegal for a U.S. user under state law.
  • Unregulated physical machines: machines the AGA study classifies as unregulated, often called “skill games.” That classification does not mean every machine marketed as a skill game is illegal in every state.

The AGA’s August 2025 study, conducted by The Innovation Group on the association’s behalf, estimated activity using responses from 5,284 U.S. adults and public market information; its machine estimate also draws on observations of unregulated machines. The findings are estimates based partly on reported behavior, not a government count of every operator, wager or machine. AGA study and methodology

How large is the market, and what do the numbers mean?

“Wagers” or handle is the amount staked, not the amount operators keep. Operator revenue is a different measure, and estimated lost state tax revenue is a modeled public-revenue impact. The AGA’s August 2025 estimates are annual figures for the activity covered by its study.

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Activity covered by the AGA study Estimated annual wagers or handle Estimated annual operator revenue Estimated annual state tax loss
Illegal and unregulated activity combined $673.6 billion in wagers $53.9 billion $15.3 billion
Illegal sports betting $84 billion in handle $5 billion $1 billion
Illegal online slots and table games Not stated $18.6 billion Not stated
Unregulated machines, often called “skill games” Not stated $30.3 billion $9.5 billion

All figures in the table are estimates from the AGA’s August 2025 study by The Innovation Group, commissioned by the AGA; the combined totals cover the three listed categories. The report also estimates 625,316 unregulated machines. It does not establish that every machine described as a skill game is unlawful in every state. AGA’s full estimates

What changed between the AGA’s 2022 and 2025 baselines?

Illegal sports betting’s estimated market share fell

The AGA study estimates that illegal sportsbooks’ share of the sports betting market declined from 35% in 2022 to 24% in 2025. It also reports that 10% of sports bettors used illegal channels exclusively. These are separate measures: a market-share estimate is not the same as the percentage of bettors who used only illegal operators.

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Online casino players reported more mixed use

Among online casino players in the study, the share who used legal sites only fell from 52% in 2022 to 24% in 2025, while 49% used both legal and illegal sites. These percentages describe player use, not illegal sites’ share of online casino revenue. A person using both types of site also means legal activity and illegal activity can coexist within the same player group.

Both comparisons are from the AGA’s August 2025 study and should be understood using its stated categories and survey basis, rather than as a complete count of every bet or player in the country. AGA study

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Are offshore sportsbooks and online casinos legal for U.S. users?

There is no single answer for every product and state. The FBI explains that the 2018 Supreme Court decision in Murphy v. NCAA allowed states to legalize sports betting. In its August 2025 consumer alert, the FBI said 39 states and the District of Columbia had legalized some form of sports betting. That dated count does not mean every betting product is available everywhere, or that the count remains current.

Before using a sportsbook, casino site or other gambling product, check the gaming agency for the state where you are physically located and confirm that the specific product and operator are authorized there. A license or legal status in another country—or another U.S. state—does not by itself establish that a site may accept your wagers. The FBI advises bettors to check applicable federal, state and local laws and consult their state gaming agency. FBI consumer alert on illegal gambling

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What risks do authorities identify?

The FBI warns that offshore sites may obscure where they operate and may not provide protections that apply to U.S.-licensed operators. It identifies possible financial loss and warns of fraud, extortion and violence, including risks when bookmakers seek to collect debts. These are law-enforcement warnings about potential exposure; they do not establish that every illegal wager or operator is tied to a particular crime.

The FBI’s Crime and Corruption in Sport and Gaming program also describes illegal gambling revenue as a possible funding source for other criminal activity and identifies game manipulation, extortion and threats as related concerns. These warnings explain why authorities treat illegal gambling as more than a licensing or tax issue, but they should not be used to infer criminal involvement by every participant. FBI Crime and Corruption in Sport and Gaming

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In an August 5, 2025 letter, a multistate group of attorneys general asked the U.S. Department of Justice for help addressing offshore gaming operations. The officials alleged that such operations may lack proper licenses, offer limited or nonexistent protections, fail to verify age, disregard state boundaries and evade taxes. They also discussed possible federal injunctive relief and asset-seizure authority. The letter is a request and statement of concerns, not a court finding about every unspecified operator. Multistate attorneys general letter

How can a consumer check an operator or report suspected illegal betting?

  1. Identify the exact product. Sports wagering, online casino games, physical machines, sweepstakes and sports-event contracts may be treated differently.
  2. Check the regulator where you are located. Use the relevant state gaming agency to verify whether the operator and product are authorized for your location; do not rely only on a site’s own claims or a foreign license.
  3. Report suspected illegal sportsbook operations through the FBI’s route. The FBI alert directs people with information about illegal sportsbook operations to the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). Follow the reporting guidance in the FBI alert.

Why are some newer gambling products hard to classify?

Regulatory boundaries are still being contested for products such as sweepstakes gaming platforms and sports-event contracts offered by prediction markets. In its 2026 State of the States report, the AGA described 2025 actions in 16 states concerning sports-event contracts and legislation in five states expressly prohibiting certain sweepstakes gaming platforms. The report also says its $53.9 billion illegal-market estimate does not include tax losses from sports-event contracts. Those developments are a reason to check the exact product and regulator position rather than assume every product in a disputed category is illegal nationwide. AGA State of the States 2026

The same AGA report puts lawful online casino revenue at $10.73 billion across seven states in 2025. That is a dated figure for state-reported legal iGaming markets, not a directly comparable denominator for the illegal online casino estimate unless the definitions and coverage are aligned. AGA State of the States 2026

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