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State of Play’s TL;DR
- The Florida attorney general has filed lawsuits against sweepstakes operators and their payment-processing partners.
- The lawsuits claim the companies are operating illegally in the state.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has filed two lawsuits aimed at online sweepstakes operators and their payment-processing partners, alleging the apps violate state gambling law.
The cases target products including Chumba Casino, LuckyLand, and Global Poker, and seek to halt their Florida operations and recover money allegedly lost by users.
The complaints were filed Wednesday morning in Hillsborough County Circuit Court. According to the attorney general’s office, the suits also claim the businesses violate Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.
Florida says the apps function as illegal casinos
The lawsuits allege the apps take real money and use in-game currency that can be exchanged for real money, gift cards, or cryptocurrency. Uthmeier said in a statement:
“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.”
The complaints argue that Florida law limits gambling activity such as slot machines to licensed in-state facilities. Based on that theory, the state is asking the court for permanent injunctions, civil penalties, attorneys’ fees, and recovery of money lost by Florida users.
Partners of sweeps also targeted
The lawsuits go beyond the gaming brands themselves by also targeting payment-processing partners, signaling that Florida’s enforcement push is not limited to front-end apps alone.
For players, the immediate takeaway is that Florida is directly challenging whether these casino-style platforms can legally operate in the state. For operators, the filings raise the stakes because the state is seeking both to stop the businesses from operating in Florida and to claw back alleged user losses.
What’s next?
For now, these are allegations in newly filed civil complaints, not court rulings. The next key question is whether the Hillsborough County court grants the permanent injunctions and other remedies Florida requested.
The filings could become a closely watched test of how aggressively states pursue online casino-style and sweepstakes-style products, especially when payment partners are pulled into the case as well.
Based on reporting by Brenton Burkett for Tampa Bay 10 News.
