“This isn’t new. For 50 years, the answer’s been the same.”
“The problem I see with gaming, and maybe it's capitalism at its worst, is: When you are a leader in an industry, what you want is a monopoly. And gaming wants to reinforce this monopoly… Believe me, I've seen it all, from Indian gaming to the Wire Act to offshore betting to sports betting and now prediction markets. Their reaction is always the same. The first thing they want to do is litigate. The next thing they want to do is legislate. And the last thing they want to do — which they finally will do — is innovate themselves.”
— Dean Heller, former U.S. Senator from Nevada
- 1976
Casino Backers Double Down and Prevail in New Jersey
Two years after New Jersey voters rejected casino gambling, proponents returned with more than double their prior spending and out-of-state capital, mainly from the Committee to Rebuild Atlantic City. The measure passed, legalizing casinos exclusively in Atlantic City.
- 1988
Nevada Casino Industry Lobbies Against Expansion of Tribal Gaming
As Congress drafted the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, lobbyists representing Nevada's commercial casino operators — the same companies that had built a decades-long, state-sanctioned monopoly on legal casino gambling — opposed the bill on the grounds that it would erode their market share. The act passed regardless.
- 1998
Nevada Operators Spend $25 Million to Block California Tribal Gaming
Ahead of California's Proposition 5, three Nevada-based casino companies — Mirage Resorts (led by Steve Wynn), Circus Circus Enterprises, and Hilton Hotels — contributed roughly $25.4 million in opposition. California was a key feeder market for Nevada casinos. Tribes and allied groups raised over $66 million and the measure passed.
- 2012
Sheldon Adelson Becomes the Nation's Largest Political Donor
Sheldon Adelson, chairman and CEO of Las Vegas Sands, contributed approximately $93 million to super PACs — more than any other donor in the election cycle. The following year, Adelson launched a national campaign urging Congress to ban online gambling, while his business interests remained concentrated in land-based casinos.
- 2013
Adelson Funds an Astroturf Coalition Against Online Gambling
Sheldon Adelson created and financed the Coalition to Stop Internet Gambling, aimed at persuading Congress to ban online gambling nationwide — a product that competed directly with his physical casinos. The coalition's national co-chairs were three former elected officials: former Denver mayor Wellington Webb, former U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln, and former New York Governor George Pataki.
- Through November 2016
Out-of-State Casino Money Funds a “Protect Atlantic City” Campaign
A group called Trenton's Bad Bet spent $14.4 million opposing a New Jersey ballot measure that would have permitted casinos outside Atlantic City, framing its campaign around protecting local jobs. Its largest donor, however, was Genting New York, a casino operator based in another state entirely.
- 2017
MGM Spends $3.8 Million Lobbying Against Tribal Casino
MGM spent $3.8 million lobbying in Connecticut, more than triple any other interest that year, to block a tribal casino proposed by the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes that would have competed with MGM's own new property in Springfield, Massachusetts. The tribal project was delayed for years and never opened.
- 2021
CSIG Dissolves Following Adelson's Death
The federal online gambling ban Adelson had sought through CSIG was never enacted, but the coalition is widely credited with slowing regulated online gaming's expansion for nearly a decade. It folded not because its tactics were exposed, but because its sole funder died.
- November 2022
Tribes Spend $150 Million to Defeat a Sportsbook Ballot Measure
California tribes spent approximately $150 million opposing Proposition 27, a mobile sports-betting measure backed by DraftKings and FanDuel, framing the operators as out-of-state corporations extracting revenue from the state. The measure was defeated 82% to 18%.
- November 2024
Caesars Opposes Untethered Sports Betting Licenses in Missouri
Missouri's sports-betting ballot measure would have permitted mobile licenses without requiring partnership with an existing casino. Caesars, which operates casinos in the state, spent $14 million opposing the measure; DraftKings and FanDuel spent $32 million in support. The measure passed by approximately 0.1 percentage points.
- 2024
Unexplained Litigation Challenges Missouri Ballot Certification
A lawsuit with no publicly disclosed backer sought to disqualify the Missouri sports-betting measure on procedural grounds shortly before the election. The plaintiff was later identified as the individual who became treasurer of the Caesars-funded opposition committee.
- 2024
Record Casino Lobbying in New York City
Total NYC lobbying spending reached $138.3 million in 2024, a record, driven substantially by applicants for downstate casino licenses. Six of the ten largest spenders that year were casino-related, including a partnership involving Mets owner Steve Cohen.
- 2023–2025
Nevada Casino Industry Blocks State Lottery Legislation
A constitutional amendment authorizing a Nevada lottery passed both legislative chambers in 2023 and required one additional passage to reach the 2026 ballot. The Nevada Resort Association spent two years lobbying against it, and the measure died without a hearing in April 2025 — the same outcome as every similar effort since 1899.
- April 2025
AGA-Drafted Language Appears in a State Regulator's Federal Filing
The American Gaming Association provided Maryland's gaming regulator with draft language opposing prediction markets. Eight days later, Maryland's official letter to the CFTC matched that draft nearly verbatim. The coordination was disclosed publicly through public records requests in 2026.
- 2023–2026
Casino Lobbyists Draft Legislation to Ban Skill Games in Pennsylvania
Litigation revealed that lobbyists for casino interests privately drafted legislation introduced by a state senator to ban skill games and met privately with Gaming Control Board officials weeks before the Board entered the legal fight against the games.
- May 20, 2026
AGA Requests Congressional Ban on Prediction Markets
Testifying before a Senate subcommittee, AGA president Bill Miller characterized prediction markets as “backdoor sports betting operations” and urged Congress to prohibit them.
- June 17, 2026
Gaming, Tribal, and Labor Coalition Seeks Federal Legislative Ban
A coalition spanning commercial gaming, tribal gaming, and labor organizations urged the Senate to insert language into the pending CLARITY Act restricting prediction markets from offering sports-related contracts.