Spin Cycle: Maverick SCOTUS Oppo Briefs, Greyhound Racing Ban Bill 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 …

All opposed say nay

Will Maverick Gaming’s lawsuit over the company’s right to offer sports betting and generally expand its gaming offerings in the state of Washington go all the way to the Supreme Court? Not if the Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe and various attorneys general and solicitors general have anything to say about it.

Maverick Gaming v. United States of America, a lawsuit filed back in January 2022 accusing state and federal officials of permitting a “discriminatory tribal gaming monopoly” in Washington, is knocking on the door of the Supreme Court of the United States, since Maverick filed a petition with SCOTUS in May seeking to overturn the Ninth Circuit’s decision that dismissed its lawsuit.

On Wednesday, three briefs in opposition to Maverick’s petition for writ of certiorari were filed. One came from the Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe, which offers sports betting at its Washington casino. Another brief was filed by state Attorney General Nicholas W. Brown and the state’s solicitor general and two deputy solicitors general. And the third was filed by U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer along with Acting Assistant Attorney General Adam R.F. Gustafson and two attorneys in the Department of Justice.

Expectations are low that we’re looking here at the first sports betting case to reach the Supreme Court in seven years, particularly as Maverick filed for bankruptcy protection last month, but … as they say, watch this space.

Down with dog racing?

Greyhound racing is currently illegal in 44 states, and only one state — West Virginia — still holds races. So it’s basically hanging by a thread.

A bill reintroduced last Friday in the House of Representatives is seeking to cut that thread.

HR 5017, also known as the Greyhound Protection Act, aims to ban greyhound racing and outlaw simulcast gambling on the outcome of international races.

“Greyhound racing is cruel, inhumane, and unpopular with the American public — which is why nearly every state has already voted to outlaw it,” said California Rep. Salud Carbajal, one of the authors of the bill, in a press release. “As a member of the Animal Protection Caucus, I’m proud to stand with colleagues from both sides of the aisle to reintroduce bipartisan legislation that will finally put an end to this brutal practice and promote the universal welfare of our greyhounds.”

The bill has been referred to the House Committee on Agriculture.

RG, to the max

A few days out from the start of the American Gaming Association’s Responsible Gaming Education Month, Aristocrat Gaming has launched its new RG-focused website KnowYourMax.com, emphasizing “positive play” and encouraging gamblers to take advantage of tools to help them avoid problematic behavior.

Said Megan Tobin, Aristocrat Gaming’s senior vice president and head of regulated marketing, via press release: “We’re incredibly proud of the impact Know Your Max has already made with players and customers, as empowering safer play is one of Aristocrat’s core values and at the heart of our global business. By launching this new, dedicated site for players, we’re continuing to bring informed choice to the forefront of everyone’s gaming experience from the start.”

Know Your Max encourages players to set budget and time limits before sessions and offers information and resources, including access to problem gambling helplines. Here’s the Know Your Max commercial, which has racked up more than 4 million views as of press time:

House Rules: Insights from around our network

HARD NO ON AB 831, PART 1: Northern California Indian tribe speaks out against anti-sweeps bill [by Jill R. Dorson]

HARD NO ON AB 831, PART 2: Third California tribe comes out against anti-sweepstakes bill [by Jeff Edelstein]

HARD NO ON AB 831, PART 3: Publishers Clearing House joins list of entities opposing California sweepstakes ban [by Eric Raskin]

ALL’S FAIR: Nevada Rep. Titus to add FAIR BET Act to 2026 Defense budget [by Ella Gorodetzky]

MAPLE LEAVE: Sweepstakes giant VGW pulling out of Canada in stages over next two months [by Eric Raskin]

LOUD AND PROUD: Emotions run high at Coney Island public hearing [by Chris Altruda]

LOST VEGAS: Las Vegas misses the homeboys [by Richard Schuetz]

SLANTED AND DISENCHANTED: CNN failed to tell ‘The Whole Story’ of sports betting expansion [by Jill R. Dorson]

MASS APPEAL: Massachusetts selects Aristocrat as vendor for online lottery platform [by Eric Raskin]

PAYMENT PLAN: Venmo, NCAA partner to curtail online harassment of student-athletes [by Brant James]

WHOLE LOTTO CASH: Powerball jackpot hits $1 billion mark for Saturday night’s drawing [by Jeff Edelstein]

NO-WIN SITUATION: Why California politicians are afraid of tribes’ fight with cardrooms [by Brian Joseph]

Small stakes and hot takes

This week on the Casino Reports podcast Low Rollers, my co-host Jeff Edelstein and I celebrate the pending arrival of football season (no, college football doesn’t count) by welcoming Props.com’s Justin Carlucci to talk NFL betting, overloading on Best Ball, injury risk in season-long overs, and whether Justin is the secret third Kelce brother. Here’s a taste:

Jeff and I also discuss the Ohio Casino Control Commission telling licensed sportsbooks to stay out of prediction markets, DraftKings prohibiting credit cards, PrizePicks ending against-the-house games, and news involving Kalshi, Donald Trump Jr., and Malik Beasley. (Plus, an unexpected aside about pro wrestling’s Four Horsemen!) Full episode:

The Shuffle: Other news and views

SERIOUS SWEAT: Ladbrokes owner’s ex-CEO and others face charges including bribery and fraud [The Guardian]

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT: Vegas resorts want to revive court geared at cleaning up Strip; critics say it was a failure [The Nevada Independent]

LET’S GET FISCAL: Pennsylvania set a new state record for gambling revenue in ‘24-25 [Penn Live]

GEORGIA ON THEIR MIND: Wynn Resorts bullish on Georgia casinos, if gambling is legalized [The Real Deal]

FEUD FOR THOUGHT: Family Feud online casino game debuts at Las Vegas Strip casino [Las Vegas Review-Journal]

CHAIRING IS CARING: International Center for Responsible Gaming names Eileen Moore Johnson board chair [CDC Gaming Reports]

MORE LIKE BETTOR BUSINESS BUREAU: Better Business Bureau study digs into rise of illegal online gambling market [WFXR FOX]

WHALE HUNTING: Could looser salon regulations stop Las Vegas tourism drop? [iGaming Business]

The Bonus Round

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

• There’s been a change atop the U.S. online casino slot title leaderboard, according to PlayAIO data shared with SBC Americas. Cash Eruption had been the most popular game the last three months, but in July, Huff N More Puff bumped it to No. 2, as the three-little-pigs-themed title went from exclusively at FanDuel Casino to a launch across multiple operators. In case you were wondering, the rest of the top five went 7s Fire Blitz Hot Stepper, 7s Fire Blitz Power 5 Jackpot Royale Express, and Gold Blitz Ultimate.

• As a professional editor, this is the sort of thing that makes me feel like I have some degree of job security:

• Here’s a wild one: At Deuces Casino in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago on Saturday night, two women were gambling, got into a shouting match, and soon turned things violent — with one of the women reportedly pulling a knife out of her bag and stabbing her adversary, leading the other woman to break a glass bottle and turns its sharp edges into a weapon. After the fight was broken up, one woman was hospitalized but reported to be in stable condition, while the other was treated for minor injuries.

• A little poker news of note: Congrats to Maurice Hawkins, the first player to win 20 World Series of Poker Circuit rings. Hawkins actually won both his 20th and 21st this week, taking down a $600 pot-limit Omaha event and then a $400 no-limit hold’em, both in New Orleans.

• To all the Spinners out there, enjoy the long holiday weekend, and let this tweet serve as a parting thought to be enjoyed for entertainment purposes only: