With the news last week of Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin suing VGW, the attorneys general in three states have now filed lawsuits against the sweepstakes gaming behemoth.
Florida, Kentucky and Arkansas sued VGW — which owns Chumba Casino, LuckyLand Casino, and Global Poker — in the span of about five months. Kentucky went first on June 17. Florida followed on Aug. 19, and Arkansas filed the newest one on Nov. 4.
"We strongly reject these allegations and will respond further in due course," a VGW spokesperson told Sweepsy regarding the Arkansas lawsuit.
Read side by side, the three lawsuits look a lot alike. Whole paragraphs repeat nearly word for word, and the same two law firms, Baron & Budd and Bursor & Fisher, sit on the signature pages of all three.
But each attorney general is working with a different set of state laws. Those differences shape who's being sued, what the states are asking for, and the potential consequences for VGW.
| Detail | Kentucky | Florida | Arkansas |
|---|---|---|---|
| Filed | June 17, 2026 | Aug. 19, 2026 | Nov. 4, 2026 |
| Attorney general | Russell Coleman | James Uthmeier | Tim Griffin |
| Court | Franklin Circuit Court | Hillsborough County Circuit Court | White County Circuit Court |
| Defendants | 8 VGW entities, plus John Does 1–50 | 7 VGW entities, plus payment firms Yodlee, Trustly and Worldpay | 10 VGW entities |
| Core claims | Gambling loss recovery, consumer protection, unjust enrichment, gambling-device forfeiture | Gambling loss forfeiture, consumer protection | Consumer protection (3 counts), unjust enrichment |
| Headline penalties | $25,000 per gambling device; $2,000 per willful violation ($10,000 if aimed at people 60+) | $10,000 per willful violation ($15,000 involving seniors or people with disabilities) | $10,000 per violation, plus up to $10,000 more for elderly or disabled victims |
| Jury trial demanded | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Same playbook, same core argument
All three states attack the same thing: the dual-currency model.
Players can buy Gold Coins, which can't be redeemed. Meanwhile, they cannot buy Sweeps Coins, which often come as a "free" bonus with Gold Coins, but they can be redeemed for real money at roughly $1 each. Each lawsuit uses the same example to make the point: a $20 Gold Coin purchase comes with 20.50 Sweeps Coins. In the view of Griffin, Florida Attorney General Jason Uthmeier, and Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman, that equates to gambling.
Uthmeier puts it most colorfully: “If it looks, swims, and quacks like a duck, it’s a duck.”
The three lawsuits also share a lot of supporting material:
Each state argues VGW built its business on the old internet sweepstakes café model, where customers bought internet time, got "free" credits, and played slots for cash.
All three cite a 2016 fundraising document from VGW, with an industry report by H2 Gambling Capital, that pointed to sweepstakes cafés as a "significant opportunity" for online cash-prize gaming in the U.S.
Each lawsuit quotes VGW sites calling their games free social casino games, and LuckyLand telling players it’s 100% safe and 100% legal.
All three argue that self-exclusion tools, play limits, and links to Gamblers Anonymous show VGW knows its product is gambling.
Each warns that players can gamble on credit, and that online access makes it harder to keep minors out.
None of that overlap is a coincidence. The same outside counsel helped write all three lawsuits, and Florida and Kentucky even share identical sections on free-to-play games, VGW's revenue motive, and industry growth figures.
Where the lawsuits differ
Kentucky has treble damages and per-device penalties
Kentucky's lawsuit may have the biggest financial threat. That comes down to two state laws.
The first is the state's Loss Recovery Act. If a losing gambler doesn't sue within six months, it lets "any other person" sue the the operator for triple the money lost. Kentucky's Supreme Court confirmed in its 2020 PokerStars decision that the state can use the law against an online operator.
The second is a gambling-device statute that allows penalties of up to $25,000 per device. Kentucky argues that each game on VGW's sites counts as its own gambling device. With hundreds of games across all VGW sites, that adds up quickly.
Kentucky is also the only state to name John Does 1-50, leaving room to add more defendants later. It goes further on influencers too, alleging that streamers often play with house money while implying they're risking their own. It specifically names Ryan Seacrest, Michael Phelps, and the Scuderia Ferrari Formula 1 team.
“We respectfully reject the Kentucky Attorney General’s claims and plan to vigorously defend this lawsuit,” a VGW spokesperson said when the lawsuit was filed. “We have lawfully operated in the US for more than a decade, delivering online Social Plus games to millions of Americans who value the freedom to enjoy the free, fun entertainment that this lawsuit effectively targets. With values including ‘our players come first’ and ‘we do what’s right’, we pride ourselves on creating not only the best games, player experiences and entertainment, but ensuring this is done safely and responsibly with robust consumer protections.”
Florida goes after the payment processors
Florida is the only state that sued companies outside VGW — Yodlee, Trustly, and Worldpay, the firms it says link player bank accounts, move the money, and process card payments on VGW’s sites.
The theory is that Florida law makes anyone who "sets up or conducts" a gambling transaction equally liable for losses. Florida argues these companies are well-versed in the gaming realm — pointing to Trustly's work for BetMGM and DraftKings — yet they kept working with VGW amid growing regulatory pressure on sweeps.
Florida also leans hardest on the money. It says VGW generated more than $5 billion in 2025 revenue before Laurence Escalante took the company private, with $3.7 billion of that from Chumba Casino alone. Then there's a creative penalty angle: Florida points out that gambling addiction is a recognized mental health disorder in the state, which could push more violations into its higher $15,000 penalty tier.
Arkansas uses VGW's own numbers
Arkansas' complaint is the newest, and in some ways the most detailed. It's the only one built on VGW's internal data to argue most Sweeps Coins come with purchases rather than via free methods.
It's also the only complaint that doesn't use a gambling loss recovery law. Instead, it bases the arguments on the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act and unjust enrichment.
Several details are unique to Arkansas:
VGW reported about $66 million in Arkansas taxable sales between July 2025 and June 2026 and paid about $6 million in sales and use tax. Arkansas alleges VGW paid nothing in earlier years despite operating there.
Arkansas' legal gambling age is 21. The complaint says VGW allowed 18-year-olds until February 2025.
Arkansas notes that Gold Coins are automatically topped up for free, and asks why roughly a quarter of players pay for them anyway.
Arkansas also adds VGW GP Limited, which it says runs Global Poker, and Beels Limited, which it says runs LuckyLand Casino, as defendants.
What this means moving forward
The biggest takeaway may be the trend itself.
Each lawsuit builds on the last. Kentucky set the template in June. Florida reused much of it and added payment processors in August. Arkansas reworked it again in November, bringing internal data, tax records, and age-limit details.
These are all just allegations now, and VGW has long maintained that its sweeps model complies with the law. But all three states say they want the same result: VGW's sites shut down, and the money returned.
VGW sites are all currently live — both Gold Coin gameplay and Sweeps Coin gameplay — in Florida, Kentucky, and Arkansas.