Americans gamble an estimated $511B illegally each year, according to new AGA report
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Americans gamble more than half a trillion dollars illegally each year, according to a new American Gaming Association (AGA) report. Bettors gamble an estimated $511 billion yearly with illegal and unregulated sportsbooks, iGaming websites and so-called “skill games,” with predatory operators costing state governments about $13.3 billion in lost taxes.
The $13B+ in taxes revenue robbed annually by illegal wagering is nearly $2.5 billion more than what legal operators generated in 2021 ($11.7 billion). Furthermore, illegal gaming costs the legal industry $44.2 billion in annual revenue, or nearly half of the $92 billion in combined commercial and tribal revenue in 2021, says AGA.
"Illegal gambling is a scourge on our society, taking advantage of vulnerable consumers, skirting regulatory obligations and robbing communities of critical tax revenue for infrastructure, education and more," said AGA President and CEO Bill Miller. "We have always known that the illegal and unregulated market is expansive, but this report illuminates just how pervasive it is."
AGA’s latest report breaks down illegal wagering by vertical. As for sports betting, the association estimates that Americans wager $63.8 billion with illegal bookies and offshore sites at a cost of $3.8 billion in gaming revenue and $700 million in state taxes.
With Americans projected to place $100 billion in legal sports bets this year, these findings imply that illegal sportsbook operators are capturing nearly 40% of the U.S. sports betting market. “While the numbers are significant, they also demonstrate Americans' movement to the regulated market with legal sports betting's expansion to 36 states and the District of Columbia,” the trade body highlights.
The report also found that 49% of past-year sports bettors have placed a bet with an illegal operator. However, bettors are mostly unaware of this. Previous AGA research shows that more than half of Americans that bet on sports with illegal operators believe they are wagering legally.
Illegal wagering on iGaming escalates to an estimated $337.9 billion with unregulated online gaming websites, with a loss of $3.9 billion in state tax revenue. With $13.5 billion in estimated revenue, the illegal iGaming market in the U.S. is nearly three times the size of the legal U.S. iGaming market, estimated to be $5 billion in 2022, according to the AGA.
“With iGaming only legal in six states, nearly half of Americans (48%) that have played online slots or table games in the past year have played with illegal online casinos,” highlights the American Gaming Association.
Lastly, the report highlights unregulated wagering on “skill machine” games. Unregulated machines continue to proliferate, notes AGA, with an estimated 580,651 unregulated machines in the U.S. With 870,000 regulated machines in casinos and slot routes, that means 40% of all gaming machines in the U.S. are unlicensed.
Based on state regulatory data for similar machines, the operator win percentage on unregulated gambling machines is significantly higher than on legal casino slot machines. During the past 12 months, slot machines in Nevada have a 7.16% win rate, compared to a nearly 25% estimated win rate for unregulated machines, demonstrating how unregulated machines take advantage of customers.
"All stakeholders—policymakers, law enforcement, regulators, legal businesses—must work together to root out the illegal and unregulated gambling market,” added Miller. “This is a fight we're in for the long haul to protect consumers, support communities and defend the law-abiding members of our industry."
The study was conducted by The Innovation Group on behalf of AGA and is based largely on a survey of 5,284 U.S adults, examining their past-year gambling behaviors with both legal and illegal operators and their observations of unregulated gaming machines. It also incorporates publicly available data on the size of the legal U.S. gaming market.
AGA has long warned about the threat posed by the illegal gambling market, ramping up its efforts against it. Earlier this year, the association launched a new toolkit to fight illegal gaming. This solution, called the Stop Illegal Gambling Toolkit, includes turnkey messaging, factsheets and social media content. The resources are aimed to help the legal industry consistently communicate and support engagements on the issue.
The effort was part of September’s Responsible Gaming Education Month initiative, during which the Association and its members promoted gaming literacy and consumer education, as well as employee training and work with partners to advance AGA's “understanding of responsible gambling.” As part of the RGEM program, AGA and the Attorney General Alliance also submitted a joint letter to attorneys general nationwide, urging them to issue consumer alerts about the pitfalls of playing with illegal operators.
