Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier is taking his sweepstakes casino crackdown beyond the companies that run the gaming sites.
Uthmeier announced on social media last week that he sent letters to Google, Meta, Reddit, Snap and TikTok to stop advertising sweepstakes casino platforms to Floridians. He said they are promoting what he considers illegal gambling, which also violates state law.
In letters sent last week, Uthmeier gave the five companies until Oct. 23 to confirm that they have stopped running the ads and explain how they will keep them from reaching Florida users. The letters name Stake and VGW’s Chumba Casino, LuckyLand and Global Poker among the sites at issue.
Last month, Uthmeier filed lawsuits against Stake and VGW.
“Through these lawsuits, my office has made it clear that Florida will not tolerate illegal gambling, and we will pursue both those who operate and those who facilitate these criminal operations,” Uthmeier wrote in last week’s letters.
The letters widen the state’s approach against sweepstakes casinos. Uthmeier first targeted sweepstakes casino operators and payment processors and is now pressing the advertising platforms that help those operators find customers.
August lawsuits targeted operators, payments
Uthmeier sued VGW and Stake in August, naming payment companies in the complaints as well. Filed in Hillsborough County Circuit Court, the cases seek to stop the operators’ Florida activity and recover alleged gambling proceeds, consumer restitution and civil penalties. The state alleges that the sites violate Florida gambling law and the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.
The dispute centers on the sweepstakes casinos’ dual-currency model. Customers can buy Gold Coins for social play and receive Sweeps Coins that they can use for casino-style games and redeem for prizes. Operators argue that Sweeps Coins are available without a purchase, making the games lawful promotions rather than real-money gambling.
Uthmeier argues that the distinction disguises customers paying to play slots, blackjack and other casino games for something of value.
“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,” Uthmeier said in a statement. “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.”
The new letters apply similar pressure to a different part of the business. If Google and the social platforms stop accepting sweepstakes casino ads in Florida, operators could lose a way to reach customers even before the lawsuits are resolved.
Sweeps not banned by legislature
Florida lawmakers have tried to tighten the state’s rules on internet gambling, but they have not enacted a sweepstakes casino ban. That leaves Uthmeier relying on existing law rather than a new statute written specifically for the dual-currency model.
In 2025, proposals aimed at online sweepstakes gaming and other gambling activity stalled. Lawmakers made another push in 2026. House Bill 591, which banned all non-Seminole Tribe gambling, died in a House subcommittee.
A broader illegal gambling bill, Senate Bill 1580, advanced further. The Senate passed it, and the House passed an amended version 82-31 on March 11. The Senate did not resolve the House changes before adjournment, and the bill died in returning messages March 13.
Florida fuels nationwide movement
Florida’s crackdown is part of a broader effort to close what regulators and legislators see as a loophole that lets dual-currency sweepstakes sites offer casino-style games without gambling licenses. In 2025, multiple states passed laws targeting the model, including:
- California
- Connecticut
- Montana
- New Jersey
- New York
Other states have let regulators take charge. Louisiana lawmakers passed a ban, but Gov. Jeff Landry vetoed it and said regulators already had the authority to act. In turn, the Louisiana Gaming Control Board and Attorney General Liz Murrill then sent 40 cease-and-desist letters to unregulated gambling operators, including sweepstakes sites.
Regulators in states such as Arizona and Michigan also pressed operators through enforcement rather than waiting for new legislation.
In Florida, Uthmeier will argue in court that existing gambling law already covers the sites and now asks the companies that advertise them to stop helping them reach Floridians.
