The Baltimore lawsuit against DraftKings and FanDuel means almost nothing directly for sweepstakes players. It challenges bonus bets and VIP marketing by licensed sportsbooks, not sweepstakes casinos or player payouts. Sweepstakes casinos are sites that use Gold Coins for play and Sweeps Coins redeemable for prizes. A different Baltimore case targets those operators, and state bans are already shrinking where they can operate.
Official resources:
- Read the official notice from Casinos — Use this primary source to verify the official announcement.
- Check eligibility on Co’s official study page — Use this page to check the study’s participation requirements.
Table of Contents
- Why the sportsbook lawsuit is separate
- Which case actually involves sweepstakes players?
- Why the result is lost access, not compensation
- What should you do with an account balance?
Why the sportsbook lawsuit is separate
Baltimore sued DraftKings and FanDuel on April 3, 2025 in Baltimore City Circuit Court. The city alleged deceptive bonus bets, VIP programs and data profiling aimed at vulnerable gamblers. According to Gambling Insider, both companies are Maryland-licensed, so the case does not allege unlicensed gambling, as detailed in the Gambling Insider report.
It focuses on misleading promotions and personalized inducements tied to problem-gambling signals. That distinction matters for sweepstakes users. A sportsbook win would not create eligibility for sweepstakes players.
Which case actually involves sweepstakes players?
Baltimore filed a separate sweepstakes action on March 4, 2026. It named six operators, including VGW/Chumba and LuckyLand, McLuck, Pulsz, Stake.us, High 5 and Blazesoft/Fortune Coins. According to CasinoBeats, the city called those sites illegal gambling enterprises under consumer-protection law, as reported in the CasinoBeats report.
That theory is about whether dual-currency play is lawful gambling. Eight states banned dual-currency sweepstakes casinos from October 2025 to August 2026. Those states include California, Indiana, Louisiana, Maine, New York, Tennessee, Montana and Nevada.
Why the result is lost access, not compensation
Settlements so far have gone to states, not players. VGW Holdings agreed to pay $8 million to New York, announced September 9, 2026 by Attorney General Letitia James, to resolve claims around Chumba Casino, Global Poker and LuckyLand Slots. According to Casinos.org, VGW had already halted Sweeps Coin sales after a June 2025 cease-and-desist, as explained in the Casinos.org update.
No player claims process came with that deal. For players, the practical effect is exits and redemption deadlines. According to Lines.com, LuckyLand Slots closed permanently September 14, 2026, removing 11 million accounts, while Chumba shrank from 45 to 34 states, as tracked in the Lines.com tracker.
What should you do with an account balance?
Check whether your site still serves your state. California's ban took effect January 1, 2026 and reaches vendors and payment providers, so exits can happen quickly.
Then act before an announced closure date: Neither Baltimore's sportsbook suit nor the October 2026 early-stage FTC inquiry into sports-betting marketing has produced liability findings or player compensation. Redeem available balances rather than waiting for a payout.
- Confirm your state eligibility on the site's terms page
- Complete identity verification early, because redemption often requires it
- Redeem Sweeps Coins under the minimum threshold rules
- Save receipts, balance screenshots and redemption emails