TWO SESSIONS, TWO FAILED BANS

Maryland has come closer to banning sweepstakes casinos than almost any state that has not actually done it. The pattern across two years is remarkable: each time, one chamber voted overwhelmingly for a ban and the other never finished the job.

THE 2025 ATTEMPT

Senate Bill 860 was introduced in January 2025 to prohibit online sweepstakes casinos, and it went further than most such bills by proposing denial or revocation of gaming licences for anyone who supported or promoted them. It cleared the Senate unanimously, 47-0, in March. The House never brought it to a vote, and the bill died when the session ended in April 2025. A companion bill, HB 1140, went the same way.

THE 2026 ATTEMPT

The following session the chambers swapped roles. House Bill 295 passed the House 105-24 and House Bill 1226 passed 134-2, both clearing the crossover deadline in March 2026. Both then died in the Senate before the session closed on 13 April 2026.

WHY BANNING ONLINE CASINOS IN MARYLAND KEEPS FAILING

The votes show there is no shortage of political will in either chamber individually. What is missing is the two chambers agreeing in the same session. Land-based casino interests have pushed hard for a ban, arguing sweepstakes platforms take revenue from licensed venues, while the Social Gaming Leadership Alliance lobbied against it and publicly welcomed the 2026 outcome.

Nothing in the record suggests the issue is settled. A third attempt in 2027 is likely, and the vote counts suggest it would pass if both chambers acted in the same session.

HOW THE REGULATOR CLEARED THE MARKET ANYWAY

While the General Assembly was failing to pass a ban, the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency was quietly achieving the same result. It treats dual-currency platforms as unauthorised gambling under existing law and has acted on that reading since 2024.

THE ENFORCEMENT TIMELINE

• 2024 onward: successive waves of cease-and-desist letters to sweepstakes operators
• January 2025: letters to Golden Hearts, Zula, McLuck, Fortune Coins and Stake.us among others
• February 2025: McLuck, Hello Millions, Jackpota, Mega Bonanza and Spree exited voluntarily
• March 2025: VGW, operator of Chumba Casino and LuckyLand Slots, was ordered to leave; High 5 Casino complied and exited
• March 2025: the agency published a categorised list of legal and illegal online gaming platforms for Maryland players
• 2026: enforcement escalated beyond operators to target payment processors

WHO LEFT AND WHO STAYED

WHY THE LETTERS WORKED AGAINST ONLINE CASINOS IN MARYLAND

The contrast with Illinois is striking. There, 63 of 65 operators ignored cease-and-desist letters because the underlying legal question was untested. In Maryland most complied. The likeliest explanation is the pending legislation: with a ban repeatedly close to passing, and a bill that threatened licensing consequences for anyone promoting these platforms, operators had more to lose by digging in.

HOW SWEEPSTAKES CASINOS WORK IN MARYLAND

The mechanics are the same everywhere, but in Maryland the legal footing they rest on is exactly what the regulator disputes.

THE DUAL-CURRENCY MODEL

Sweepstakes platforms run two virtual currencies. Gold Coins are play money with no cash value. Sweeps Coins are a promotional currency that can be redeemed for cash or prizes once play-through conditions are met. Crucially, no purchase is ever required to obtain Sweeps Coins.

Free routes normally include:

• A welcome bundle of Gold Coins plus free Sweeps Coins at sign-up
• Daily login rewards and timed bonuses
• Social media giveaways and promo codes
• Postal mail-in requests, which every compliant platform must offer

THE ARGUMENT ON EACH SIDE

Operators argue that because the prize-eligible currency can always be obtained free, there is no consideration and therefore no gambling. The Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency reads the same facts differently, treating platforms where players commonly buy coin packages and redeem winnings for cash as unauthorised gambling regardless of the free-entry route.

WHY THIS MATTERS FOR PLAYERS

No Maryland court has ruled on which reading is correct, and with no statute either way the question stays open. In practice the regulator interpretation is what shapes the market, because operators respond to enforcement risk rather than waiting for a judgment.

WHAT IS LEGAL IN MARYLAND

Maryland has a substantial regulated gambling market. Online casino play is the gap in it, and the sweepstakes route into that gap is contested rather than closed.

THE REGULATOR

The Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency oversees the lottery, the six casinos, sports wagering and fantasy competitions. In March 2025 it published a categorised list of which online gaming platforms it considers legal for Maryland players and which it does not, which is the clearest public statement of its position on sweepstakes.

SPORTS BETTING WITHOUT IGAMING

Maryland launched retail sports betting in 2021 and mobile in late 2022, and the market is well established. Casino games were never included. The same split applies here as in most of the country: you can legally bet on a game from your phone in Maryland, but you cannot legally spin a licensed slot.

WHY ONLINE CASINOS IN MARYLAND ARE STILL NOT LICENSED

Maryland has debated legalising online casinos alongside banning sweepstakes, and neither has passed. The two questions are connected: the same land-based interests shape both.

THE ATTEMPTS

House Bill 17 and Senate Bill 340 were both filed in the 2025 session to legalise online casino gaming, the latter by Senator Ron Watson refiling an earlier measure. Neither advanced before the session ended in April 2025. Senate Bill 652 returned to the question in 2026 and had the support of the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency at a March committee hearing, but the committee took no action.

THE OBSTACLES

Maryland six land-based casinos are the central obstacle, as they are in most states. Their operators have argued that an online market would cannibalise their floors, and the same lobbying that pushes for a sweepstakes ban also resists licensed competition online. A constitutional question adds friction too, since Maryland expanded gambling by voter referendum in the past.

WHAT COMES NEXT

Both questions remain open going into 2027. The vote counts on the ban bills suggest prohibition has broad support whenever the chambers align, while iGaming legalisation has never come close. The most likely near-term outcome is continued enforcement without new law in either direction.

PLAYER PROTECTION AND RESPONSIBLE GAMBLING IN MARYLAND

The Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency licenses and audits the state casinos and sportsbooks. It does not licence sweepstakes platforms, and it has publicly listed them among the sites it considers unauthorised, so no state body stands behind them.

WHAT THAT MEANS IN PRACTICE

If a platform refuses a redemption, closes an account holding a balance, or withdraws from Maryland at short notice, there is no state authority to appeal to. Nobody is auditing the games or verifying payout rates. The operator own terms are the only agreement you have, and the 2025 exits showed how quickly access can end.

Habits that keep play under control:

• Set a firm budget for Gold Coin purchases and treat it as spent money
• Never buy more coins to chase a losing session
• Redeem Sweeps Coins balances promptly rather than letting them build up
• Use deposit limits, session reminders and self-exclusion where a platform offers them

THE PAYMENT PROCESSOR ESCALATION

The 2026 shift toward targeting payment processors matters for players in a practical way. If a processor stops handling transactions for a platform, purchases and redemptions can fail even while the site itself is still reachable. That is a reason to avoid holding large balances.

ENFORCEMENT TARGETS OPERATORS

Nothing in the Maryland enforcement campaign is directed at players. No Maryland resident has been penalised for playing at a sweepstakes casino, and the failed bills were aimed at operators and those who promote them. The practical risk to a player is losing account access and any unredeemed balance.

WHERE TO GET HELP

Maryland runs a problem gambling helpline on 1-800-GAMBLER, and the Maryland Center of Excellence on Problem Gambling provides free treatment and support services. The state also operates a voluntary exclusion programme covering its licensed venues.

HOW TO APPROACH MD ONLINE CASINOS RIGHT NOW

Maryland is a market in retreat rather than one that has closed. The platforms still here are operating against a regulator that has said publicly it considers them unauthorised, and against the prospect of a third ban attempt in 2027.

THE RISK IS ACCESS, NOT PROSECUTION

The likeliest thing to go wrong is not a legal problem for you, it is a platform withdrawing at short notice, exactly as a dozen brands did across 2025. Keep balances low and redeem regularly rather than accumulating a large Sweeps Coins position you might not be able to cash out.

WHAT TO CHECK BEFORE SIGNING UP

• Whether the platform still accepts Maryland in its own current terms, not a third-party list
• Redemption speed and the minimum redemption threshold
• How the operator handled its exit from states it has already left
• Whether purchases and redemptions are processing reliably, given the pressure on payment processors
• Genuine free entry routes, including a working postal method

THE HONEST SUMMARY

There is no licensed real money option in Maryland, and the sweepstakes route is legal on paper but actively discouraged in practice. If you play, you are outside the consumer protections the state provides for its licensed casinos and sportsbooks. For the wider national picture, see our USA online casinos hub, or compare with Illinois, where near-identical letters were mostly ignored instead of obeyed.