Spin Cycle: State-By-State Legislation, Poker Player Tax Evasion Highlight Week In Gambling

Welcome to “Spin Cycle,” Casino Reports’ weekly Friday roundup of all things impactful, intriguing, impressive, or idiotic in the gambling industry. Pull up a chair, grab a stack of chips and a glass of your beverage of choice, and take a spin with us through this week’s news cycle …

Legislation all across the nation

We are in peak legislative season — lots of bills are in motion, and the state governments with limited sessions mostly haven’t hit their deadlines yet — so here’s a quick look at four states with news worth knowing this week:

• Illinois’ HB 5702 was referred to the Rules Committee Tuesday, and if passed, it would amend the Illinois Gaming Act as well as the Video Gaming Act and create a gaming oversight officer to liaise between the state’s gambling agencies. The bill would also permit the use of gaming devices that are “not considered gambling,” create a minority mentorship program, and require the biannual publication of a “disparity and availability” study.
• Iowa is also making moves to alter gaming oversight, with the state Senate voting unanimously Tuesday in favor of SF 2289. The bill targets offshore operators and sweepstakes casinos by expanding the powers of the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission to include issuing cease-and-desist letters and pursuing injunctive relief in efforts to shut down unregulated sites.
• Missouri’s HB 2989 has advanced through the House and was referred Thursday to the Senate Select Committee on Gaming. The bill would create the “Illegal Gaming Enforcement Fund” to identify and prosecute unregulated operators amid Missouri’s continuing push-and-pull over video lottery terminals (VLTs).
• Those hoping to see casino gambling legalized in Hawaii this year will likely have to direct their hope toward next year. An online-only sports betting bill still has a chance in the House. But the casino legislation? “They’re on the operating room floor, all dead,” state Sen. Glenn Wakai told local news outlet KHON 2. “This community is not receptive to the idea of Hawaii being the 49th state to allow for gambling.”

Can’t bluff the law

Former U.S. Supreme Court litigator and SCOTUSblog founder Tom Goldstein was found guilty Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland on 12 of 16 counts, all related to tax evasion or tax fraud.

What does this have to do with the world of gambling? Goldstein is a high-stakes poker player whose alleged tax crimes are related to poker winnings he was accused of hiding from his accountants and the IRS.

The six-week trial featured testimony from several figures from the poker cash-game scene, including pros Andrew Robl and Keith Gipson and poker-playing actor Tobey Maguire — who testified that Goldstein helped him recover a $7 million poker debt in 2020. Testimony delved into poker games with multimillion-dollar swings, including a series of heads-up matches between Goldstein and banker Andy Beal that saw Goldstein allegedly profit $51.4 million.

Sentencing awaits. Goldstein is expected to serve jail time and has been placed under home confinement in the interim.

The darkness and the Light

Gambling product and services provider Light & Wonder shared its fourth-quarter earnings numbers on Tuesday, and the results were a giant “yeah, but.”

L&W reported 12% revenue growth and 29% cash flow growth, while slot machine sales were up 20%.

But the company overall still had a net losing quarter, by $15 million, owing mostly to its $127.5 million settlement with Aristocrat Leisure over an intellectual property dispute. Take that outlay away, and 2025 Q4 was a wildly profitable one for Light & Wonder.

For the full year, L&W reported $276 million profit.

“We closed out 2025 with another strong quarter, delivering double-digit year-over-year growth in both revenue and cash flows,” Light & Wonder CEO Matt Wilson said. “We also achieved several important milestones, including the successful acquisition and integration of Grover [Gaming], accelerating our expansion in the charitable gaming market, and our transition to a sole primary listing on the [Australian Securities Exchange].”

House Rules: Insights from around our network

WON IF BY LAND: AGA’s Bill Miller says iGaming legalization stalled because states, tribes see value in retail revenue [by Jill R. Dorson]

SUDDENLY SEYMOUR: NFL great Richard Seymour wins WSOP tournament for circuit ring, $106K payday [by Eric Raskin]

PICK PLAY: $12.8 million Arizona lotto ticket at center of Circle K controversy [by Chris Altruda]

LOOT PROBLEM: New York AG accuses video game maker of illegal gambling [by Jeff Edelstein]

ACQUIRE THE EMPIRE: Golden Nugget owner Tilman Fertitta reportedly trying to buy Caesars [by Daniel O’Boyle]

THE PENN IS FIGHT-IER: Penn CEO Jay Snowden not a fan of Maine’s new online casino law [by Jeff Edelstein]

STRAT’S INCREDIBLE: Soaring into the Stratosphere [by Richard Schuetz]

FALLING ’STARS?: FanDuel appears to be getting ready to offer poker [by Jeff Edelstein]

PREACHING PATIENCE: Addabbo seemingly not optimistic that New York iGaming will happen this year [by Eric Raskin]

STATE OF THE INDUSTRY: AGA celebrates ‘record-setting growth,’ blasts prediction market threat in annual report [by Brant James]

TROTTING OUT REVISED BILL: New version of Maryland HHR proposal would send decision to voters [by Chris Altruda]

LEAVING LAS VEGAS: The scenic route home from Vegas: Seven casinos in two days [by Mitch Malherbe]

Small stakes and hot takes

This week on the Casino Reports podcast Low Rollers, I welcomed Desert Degens CEO Mike Jackness, a veteran industry entrepreneur who pivoted a little over a year ago to a career as a slots influencer. We spoke about the pros and cons of putting “degens” in the name on the product, how slots influencers make money, what educating viewers about optimal slots play entails, and more.

I also broke down the latest on the efforts in Virginia to legalize online casino, plus I offered an online poker (and casino) player’s perspective on the apparent forthcoming brand change from PokerStars to FanDuel Poker.

Full episode:

The Shuffle: Other news and views

DOUBLE TROUBLE: Billionaire Laurence Escalante hit with fresh drug charges [Financial Review]

FAREWELL TO AN INNOVATOR:  Former Shuffle Master CEO, UNLV educator Mark Yoseloff dies [CDC Gaming]

MIKIE ON THE MIC: NJ Governor Mikie Sherrill to deliver keynote address at ECGC 2026 [GGB Magazine]

WHAT A HACK: Wynn Resorts target of cybersecurity breach [8 News Now]

IN THE SIMULATION: Montreal mock casino lets researchers study digital gambling behavior [City News]

YOU ARE LOOKING LIVE: Downtown Las Vegas casino launches live-dealer streaming channel [Las Vegas Review-Journal]

COUNTDOWN TO CONSTRUCTION: Construction prep underway for $8 billion Metropolitan Park casino in Queens [Queens Daily Eagle]

CLOSE CALL: Push for Fort Wayne-area casino narrowly clears state Senate [Indiana Capital Chronicle]

NOT EXACTLY BOOMING: Petersburg business owners say they’ve had zero customers come from new casino [WRIC]

THE GRANITE STATE AWAITS: New hotel and casino planned at N.H.’s Hampton Beach: What we know [MassLive]

The Bonus Round

Completing the Spin Cycle with some odds and ends and our favorite social media posts of the week.

• A reminder to always check the source when it comes to iGaming legalization polling. Here in the Spin Cycle we’ve been quick to point out when polls showing that citizens are against iGaming are funded by a group with “Against iGaming” in its name, and we may as well be fair and balanced and point out when it comes from the other side. A survey of Massachusetts voters released this week showed that 59% supported legal online gaming vs. just 24% opposed — numbers that may or may not mean anything. The poll was commissioned by the Sports Betting Alliance, a group of operators hoping to bring their online casinos to Massachusetts.

• How much does World Poker Tour (WPT) branding matter for a poker tournament? In the case of the LA Poker Classic (LAPC) at Commerce Casino, a lot, apparently. In 2020, the final year the LAPC was a WPT event, the $10K main event drew 490 players and offered a $1,015,000 top prize. In 2026, without the WPT’s involvement, the same tournament attracted 50 entries this week, with $158,030 going to first place.

• Fans of the popular slot 7s Fire Blitz Hotstepper have a new version of the game available if they’re in either New Jersey or Michigan — the two states where Hard Rock Bet Casino is live. Hard Rock announced Wednesday the debut of Hard Rock Hotstepper, a bespoke version with new visuals and a “rock-infused soundtrack.”

• Dates and details were released last weekend for Cardplayer Lifestyle’s 13th Mixed Game Festival, a cash and tournament poker celebration held at Resorts World Las Vegas. The play spans two five-day stretches: March 8-12 and 15-19. There will be four tournaments in the mix, each with a $300 buy-in.