Going A Little Off-Script
A break from the norm today, with earnings calls and class action lawsuits getting the spotlight... but for very good reason.
The Bulletin Board
THE LEDE: Boyd Gaming prepares for life after FanDuel.
ROUNDUP: DC budget kills lawsuit; Former Mashpee Chair’s legal troubles; VGTs in Chicago; Quote of the Week.
NEWS: BetMGM CEO talks loss deduction, prediction markets, and sweepstakes.
VIEWS: The truth about class action lawsuits.
AROUND the WATERCOOLER: Economic utility and truthiness.
STRAY THOUGHTS: The industry’s uncertain future.
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The Lede: What’s Next for Boyd Post-FanDuel?
I rarely report on earnings calls, but Boyd Gaming touched on several trends in the online gambling space in its most recent call.
As previously reported, Flutter recently acquired Boyd’s 5% stake in FanDuel for $1.755 billion, and as expected, the transaction was a topic of interest during Boyd’s recent earnings call. So much so that Boyd Gaming President and CEO Keith Smith led off the call with the company’s perspective on the sale:
“Before discussing our second quarter results, let me first touch on our recent FanDuel announcement. As we announced 2 weeks ago, we reached an agreement to sell our 5% equity interest in FanDuel to Flutter Entertainment for $1.755 billion in cash, unlocking the significant value that we have created through our partnership with FanDuel.”
Smith noted that the deal included restructuring and extending market access agreements with FanDuel through 2038 and that the proceeds from the all-cash sale will be used to pay down debt and keep a balanced sheet.
Smith also said, “The FanDuel transaction is not a precursor to another transaction.”
That was backed up by the company’s online gambling estimates for the remainder of 2025 and into 2026:
“We estimate our online segment will generate $50 million to $55 million in EBITDAR for the full year 2025, followed by $30 million in EBITDAR in 2026.”
No Change to Boyd’s Online Gambling Strategy
Multiple analysts directly asked Smith about the company’s online gambling strategy moving forward.
According to Smith, there is no change, and Boyd will “continue to be focused on a regional online casino strategy.”
“We bought Pala Interactive several years ago, now known as Boyd Interactive…
“We wanted to be able to make sure we had a compelling and competitive product in the markets where we operate and in some of the important surrounding states where we draw customers that we were not looking to have a national product or be a national leader in the online casino business.”
“Look, our customers go home at night, and they may want to still continue to gamble and enjoy this and if it's legal in the state, we want to make sure we have a product that they can enjoy when they're not on-premise.”
Where Does Boyd Stand on Online Gambling?
Even without a stake in FanDuel, don’t expect Boyd to join the National Association Against iGaming (NAAiG) anytime soon, as Smith called online casinos complementary to land-based casinos: “We think it is important. We think they're clearly complementary to each other and that long term, you need to have both products as part of your portfolio.”
Smith pointed to New Jersey, where it operates online and land-based gambling, noting the online rewards are “fully integrated with our land-based rewards program, so the player gets all the benefits when they're playing online as they was if they were playing in the building.”
“While we're waiting for other states to legalize this product, we'll just continue to make sure that we improve our core product and that it's ready when various legislatures around the country approve this.”
Beyond the Headline: Are There Any Strong Candidates?
So what states might take the iGaming plunge?
Citizens laid out key markets to watch in its most recent Online Gaming Market Insights:
Sports Betting: Minnesota, Georgia, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Alabama, Nebraska, and Texas.
iGaming: Illinois, North Carolina, New York, Maryland, Ohio, and Louisiana.
Citizens doesn’t say when these markets might legalize, but another firm, Eilers & Krejcik Gaming (a newsletter sponsor), only has Hawaii, Georgia, Minnesota, and Texas legalizing and launching sports betting before 2029.
The situation is even bleaker on the online casino side, where EKG only expects Florida to legalize and launch online casinos (through a compact with the Seminole tribe) before 2027.
STTP Thoughts: Momentum can turn on a dime, but the current landscape is about as inhospitable to further expansion (particularly on the online casino side) as it has ever been. Look for my top sports betting and online casino candidates in an upcoming newsletter.
Roundup: DC Budget Kills Lawsuit; Former Mashpee Chair’s Legal Troubles; VGTs in Chicago; Quote of the Week
DC budget includes provision that modernizes centuries-old loss recovery law [InGame]: The DC City Council passed its FY 2026 budget, and as Jill Dorson noted, it “all but extinguished a gambling lawsuit that could have cost commercial sports betting operators tens of millions of dollars.” As I reported Monday, “Then there is the Statute of Anne, which has become extremely important after a “mysterious” LLC (DC Gambling Recovery) filed a lawsuit in Washington, DC, using a 300-year-old gambling loss recovery law to sue sports betting operators, and claw back winnings, using an old “loss recovery” statute on the books.” Assuming Mayor Muriel Bowser signs off on it, the changes exempt legal gambling (including sports betting) from the more-than-300-year-old law.
Former Mashpee Wampanoag Chairman pleads guilty [MassLive.com]: Cedric Cromwell, the former chairman of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, pleaded guilty to four counts of filing a false tax return in connection with the tribe’s proposed First Light Casino project. Per MassLive, “Cromwell didn’t report more than $177,000 in income — most of it related to the planned First Light Resort and Casino in Taunton — on his federal tax returns from 2014-2017.” Cromwell was already convicted of bribery in connection with the casino and will face sentencing on all charges. Reporting on the First Light Casino is a labor of love for STTP.
Chicago Mayor is open to VGTs in the city [Center Square]: VGTs are nearly unavoidable in Illinois, but they are not regulated in Chicago — There are plenty of unregulated machines in the city (I’ve heard upward of 40% of bars, convenience stores, etc. have gambling machines in them). That could be about to change. “I’m open. I’ll just say it like that, right, because the work that we have to do to continue to build a safe and affordable city requires us to make critical investments. As long as people are willing to participate in that form of entertainment, it’s an opportunity for us to secure the revenue that’s needed,” Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said at a press availability last week. Regulating the machines in the city would generate $250 million for the state and $50-$70 million for the city annually.
Quote of the Week: “15%. That’s the percentage of OSB deposits that are funded by credit card (in markets with this funding option), per our estimates. Our research indicates that a credit card ban would not meaningfully negatively impact the Illinois legal market because the vast majority of affected customers would shift to a permitted funding method.” ~ Eilers & Krejcik Gaming (a newsletter sponsor)
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News: A Double-Dose of Earnings Calls: BetMGM
In the lead story, I mentioned I don’t often cover earnings calls, but in addition to all of the Boyd news, BetMGM/Entain addressed several pertinent topics that the Straight to the Point newsletter tracks.
First up is BetMGM CEO Adam Greenblatt’s speculative, but optimistic, comments about the gambling loss deduction cap that was passed in the One Big Beautiful Act, and the subsequent efforts to return the loss cap to 100%:
“I think this is going to go away. I think there are enough smart people who recognize that this may not have been the best approach to take. There are a number of bills underway to unwind the 90% cap. And frankly, we've run all the scenarios on the numbers, and the current framework can result in some anomalous outcomes that don't make sense. We think the rational outcome will prevail, and we think that this is going to go away.”
Next were Greenblatt’s comments on “adjacent” products (sweepstakes and prediction markets). When asked about the risks and opportunities, Greenblatt went in on sweepstakes sites, calling them illegal iGaming that is bad for the regulated sector, state revenues, and players:
“We're delighted to see states now increasingly adopting legislation against the sweeps industry… What we would love to see and what we are certainly advocating for is more regulated iGaming states. I think BetMGM, more than anyone, stands to gain relatively the most in the event that it happens, and we fully anticipate that over time it will happen.”
“But the message to our lawmakers is that the sweeps activity is happening anyway. As I've said, the good guys aren't benefiting. And so we would like to see that situation unwind and, in fact, reverse.”
Greenblatt was less abrasive when it came to prediction markets, which he said the company is monitoring very closely [bold mine]:
“Very closely means daily, including all the court proceedings, including the new entrants returning to the US… And what I will say is that we won't be caught flat-footed, but nothing to talk about today.”
When asked if he was worried about moats forming around the prediction market sector, Greenblatt said, BetMGM has the ability, but not the desire, to be a first mover.
“Our state regulators have been very clear. Our tribal partners have been very clear. 34 states' attorneys general have been very clear. They do not believe prediction markets should offer sports contracts because that is sports betting.”
Greenblatt went on to state his belief that being a first-mover is secondary to liquidity, something the companies jumping into the space have loads of. He mentioned Polymarket (but not by name), and added, “And… the Robinhoods and the Cryptos and the Coinbases whose ability to invest and grow a liquidity pool far exceeds, I think, sports betting market incumbents, to the point where I feel like it's the prediction market operators who are more likely to have an outsized market share than those trying to get into the market move.”
Views: Class Action Lawsuits Are Who We Thought They Were
As previously noted, gambling is a magnet for class-action lawsuits, which is why I only sporadically report on them. One of the most powerful magnets of late has been sweepstakes.
As attorney Daniel Wallach noted on LinkedIn, “There are now 49 pending lawsuits that have been filed against online sweepstakes casinos – almost all of which have been brought within the last 12 months.”
But, as Jessica Welman noted over at SBC Americas and in response to Wallach on LinkedIn, most of these lawsuits go absolutely nowhere:
The Social & Promotional Games Association (SPGA) even penned an op-ed, noting how easy it is to game a broken system and file a class-action lawsuit:
“In recent months, the gaming and sweepstakes industry has seen a surge in media coverage of class action lawsuits. With each filing, headlines herald a new supposed risk, threat, or crack in a category’s foundation. This reflexive amplification is misleading, and it needs to stop.
“Class actions: Mostly bark, very little bite
“The reality is simple: Filing a class action is easy. Winning one is not. Anyone can file a lawsuit, just as anyone can shout on a street corner. That doesn’t make the claims credible or newsworthy. Most filings lead nowhere.”
Or as Chris Grove once noted on X:
“There’s a funny lawyer billboard in Las Vegas that reads: “Injured while searching for dead bodies at Lake Mead? Demand compensation!”
“That’s a joke, but this is real. Class action against gaming and gambling sites is an established industry that just puts as many hooks in the water as possible due to the low cost of doing so.”
Around the Watercooler
Social media conversations, rumors, and gossip.
If this is what is on offer when it’s being heavily scrutinized, what will be on offer if prediction markets win in court and have the proverbial green light?
Also, kudos to Dustin for being a source of truth on the subject:
Stray Thoughts
I’ve been around a while, and I’ve seen the gambling industry undergo all sorts of threats and changes, but the more I think about the current landscape, I keep asking myself the same question: Has there ever been a period with this much uncertainty? Every story feels like it has seven layers of intrigue embedded into it.