DraftKings' chief executive says it's making headway in getting more states to legalize sports betting and online casino gambling, which historically hasn't always been the case.
“I feel like we have some real momentum in iGaming now, the first time I’ve felt that way in a few years,” DraftKings' CEO Jason Robins said Tuesday at a Morgan Stanley conference. “We also, I think, will get some sports states done this year.”
DraftKings CEO Jason Robins just now at a Morgan Stanley conference suggested the Dallas Mavericks trading Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers has helped spark more interest in the NBA (and, as a result, potentially in NBA betting).
— Geoff Zochodne (@GeoffZochodne) March 4, 2025
Robins explained his bullishness by saying 2024 was a tougher year for gaming-related legislation, because of the challenge in general and lawmakers who were focused on elections. The only real success last year, he noted, was the District of Columbia expanding its sports betting market.
With those elections now in the rear-view mirror, Robins said that while he can’t say for certain, his expectation is “at least a few states” will authorize sports betting or iGaming.
“And I do feel like we finally have built some momentum in iGaming,” Robins said. “I'm not saying we'll get a bunch of bills this year. But whereas … two years ago, I would have told you I don't even know which state is going to be next or how long it's going to take, I feel now like we are definitely, if not this year, certainly within the next two sessions, going to get some iGaming bills done.”
Robins didn’t name any states that could potentially legalize sports betting or iGaming this year or next. However, his comments come plenty of legislation circulates in state legislatures right now that could help his prediction come true.
Plenty of bills for passing
There's a bill that would legalize statewide online sports betting in Mississippi, multiple legalization measures in Oklahoma (although the governor seems set on spiking several of them), and ongoing efforts in other holdouts, such as Georgia, Minnesota, and Texas.
Online casino gambling legislation has also been introduced in states such as Illinois, Maryland, and New York. Even one state would be a significant win for iGaming supporters, as the legalization of online slots and table games has been much slower than sports betting in the U.S.
While 38 states have some form of legal sports betting, only seven have done the same with iGaming, due to concerns about cannibalizing the business of brick-and-mortar casino operators, among other things.
Internet gambling operators are still getting a big lift from iGaming in preexisting states. DraftKings reported last month that its iGaming revenue hit a new quarterly high of $426 million for the final three months of 2024, up from $352 million a year earlier.
Just not that kind of bill, please
Yet legalization bills are not the only pieces of legislation DraftKings, FanDuel, and others are watching.
There are also tax hikes state lawmakers in Maryland and New Jersey proposed, as well the blowback DraftKings recently received in Texas over its Jackpocket lottery courier app.
Robins said Tuesday there's "a lot of noise" on the legislative and regulatory fronts, but noted only two states actually hiked online sports betting-related taxes recently, Ohio and Illinois. Of those, only Illinois' hike brought it to an "off-market" level, the DraftKings' CEO said.
The Illinois tax hike (to as high as 40% for operators) prompted some creative thinking on DraftKings' part. The Boston-based company proposed a surcharge on winning bets in higher-tax jurisdictions, but ultimately scrapped the idea after hearing from customers and seeing none of its rivals would follow suit.
Still, only four U.S. states have a tax rate over 20% for sports betting, Robins added.
“The vast majority of states are very stable on that front,” the DraftKings' CEO stated.
We hear what you're saying
Robins also said it is “potentially true” that tax rate increases can benefit market leaders, which in the world of U.S. online sports betting would be DraftKings and FanDuel.
“Obviously, we need to make sure that we also educate policymakers that at some point it's going to come out of the consumer and that deteriorates the value proposition and that makes it harder to compete with the illegal market and grow the [total addressable market],” Robins said. “So we want to make sure people understand that. But we also kind of look at some of the states that have increased taxes, and they're still growing nicely and there has been some consolidation there.”
However, DraftKings generally wants flexibility, and so Robins said it's trying to explain to state lawmakers that higher taxes ultimately make it more difficult to combat offshore and unregulated operators.
“And most have been receptive to that,” the CEO told the audience.
