One of the sweepstakes gaming operators that received a cease-and-desist order in Arizona last Friday has wasted little time exiting the state.
Thrillzz, a sweeps sportsbook, added Arizona to its list of excluded states when it updated its terms and conditions on Aug. 16. Just the day prior, on Aug. 15, the Arizona Department of Gaming announced it had issued cease-and-desist letters to four sweeps operators: Thrillzz, Fliff, Betty Sweeps, and Pulsz.
As of Aug. 20, the lists of excluded or restricted states at Fliff, Betty Sweeps, and Pulsz did not yet include Arizona. It’s rare for operators to act as quickly as Thrillzz did, so that suggests either they knew of the cease-and-desist well before the ADG publicized it, or their operation is built so that this type of shutdown can happen nearly immediately.
The excluded states for Thrillzz — one of the rare sweeps gaming sites that is not 21-plus or 18-plus, but instead 19-plus — is as follows (and it’s one of the longer lists in the industry):
- Alabama
- Arizona
- Connecticut
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Michigan
- Mississippi
- Montana
- New Jersey
- New York
- Nevada
- Ohio
- Washington
Previous actions in Arizona
In late June, the ADG sent cease-and-desists to High 5 Casino and Stake.us, as well.
Both operators have since exited the state.
Is there a counterargument to these cease-and-desists?
We haven’t yet seen any sweepstakes casino operator challenge a cease-and-desist order in court. So we likely won’t see anything like that happen in Arizona, too.
But let’s say one operator decided to fight back against its cease-and-desist.
The ADG identifies sweeps operators as “illegal online gambling platforms,” per its release regarding these cease-and-desists. So would there be any legal ground to stand on?
Perhaps.
Previously, the sweeps casino Spins America had a link on its site directing visitors to a legal opinion regarding sweeps legality that it had requested in order to show payment processors. That legal opinion claimed there was basis for the legality of sweepstakes casino operations in 33 United States jurisdictions, including Arizona.
The opinion asserts that sweeps casinos are legal in Arizona because:
- Players aren’t required to pay.
- Sweeps Coins can be acquired by an alternate mode of entry (AMOE).
- All players face equal chances, no matter how they got their Sweeps Coins.
- Arizona’s definition of gambling requires wagering “something of value” and it can be argued Sweeps Coins are not that.
Of course, the burden of proof to overturn a cease-and-desist issued from a regulator or Attorney General is significant, so even these conclusions from Spins America’s legal opinion likely wouldn’t be enough.
Another notable recent departure in another state
In related news, SpinPals recently added Delaware to its list of restricted territories. The other states in that list are Alabama, Connecticut, Idaho, Louisiana, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, and Washington.
While there has been no recent public legal or legislative actions in Delaware, it was one of the first states to target sweeps casinos as illegal operators. In February 2023, Delaware’s Division of Gaming Enforcement issued a cease-and-desist to VGW, prompting its exit that April.
SpinPals isn’t the only recent notable departure in Delaware.
Zula Casino and RealPrize have also made the same exit.
These recent departures may stem from a variety of reasons: quiet cease-and-desist orders, following VGW’s lead, deciding it’s easier to leave Delaware than risk legal trouble for relatively small returns, or simply choosing to clear out of states with real-money iGaming. (That isn’t the case for SpinPals, though, as it’s still active in states such as Pennsylvania and West Virginia, according to its terms.)
