Florida is now on the offensive against sweepstakes casinos.
In lawsuits filed early Wednesday morning, Florida Attorney General Jason Uthmeier sued two megabrands in the sweeps gaming industry: VGW and Stake. VGW is the company behind Chumba Casino, Global Poker, LuckyLand Casino, and soon-to-close LuckyLand Slots, while Stake is the company behind Stake.us.
“These so-called ‘sweepstakes’ and ‘social casinos’ are illegal online gambling operations,” Uthmeier said in a press release announcing the lawsuits. “If it looks like a casino, takes real money like a casino, and pays out like a casino, it is a casino — and it is illegal under Florida law. These companies have been preying on Floridians, including minors and seniors, with deceptive marketing, and 24/7 access, while dodging our state’s licensing, taxation, and consumer-protection requirements. They must be stopped.”
Kentucky and Florida may be setting a new trend
With his 74-page lawsuit against VGW and 64-page lawsuit against Stake, Uthmeier appears to be following the lead of Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman, who filed lawsuits against VGW, Kalshi, and Polymarket in his state in June.
In other words: Kentucky may have changed the playbook for sweepstakes casino enforcement.
Instead of sending sweeps casinos a cease-and-desist letter and waiting for them to decide whether to comply, Coleman and now Uthmeier went straight to court against the operators.
Cease-and-desist letters have become a common enforcement tool against sweeps casinos. Some operators leave a state after receiving one, while others continue operating or ignore the warning entirely.
By filing immediately instead of waiting to judge a response to a cease-and-desist, Kentucky and Florida have forced VGW (and also Stake in Florida) to make a more consequential decision: Fight the allegations in court, or leave the states.
VGW has not yet responded to a request for comment regarding Wednesday’s Florida lawsuit. However, in response to the Kentucky lawsuit, a VGW spokesperson said:
“We respectfully reject the Kentucky Attorney General’s claims and plan to vigorously defend this lawsuit. 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.”
VGW has consistently argued that its model is legal because Sweeps Coins cannot be purchased directly and can instead be obtained through free methods and promotions.
