Sweepstakes Casinos in Arizona (2026)

Are sweepstakes casinos legal in Arizona?

Arizona has not passed a law banning sweepstakes casinos, but its gaming regulator treats them as illegal gambling and has pushed most of the big brands out of the state. Since 2025 the Arizona Department of Gaming (ADG) has issued repeated cease-and-desist orders naming Stake.us, High 5 Casino, Pulsz, Modo.us, Thrillzz, Betty Sweeps and Fliff among others, and every named operator has withdrawn. A shrinking number of smaller brands still accept Arizona players, so availability is patchy and can change without notice.

Arizona’s criminal code (Title 13, Chapter 33 of the Arizona Revised Statutes) defines gambling as risking something of value for the chance to win a benefit from a game of chance or skill or a future event, and it is unlawful unless it falls into a listed exception: tribal gaming under compact, the Arizona Lottery, licensed event wagering and fantasy sports, pari-mutuel racing, charitable raffles and bingo, amusement gambling and purely social gambling. There is no exception for sweepstakes. The ADG’s position is that a Gold Coins purchase that comes with redeemable Sweeps Coins is consideration, the games are slots and table games, and the prizes are cash, so the platform is an unlicensed casino. Operators have not challenged the orders in court; they have left.

Recent developments

• December 2024: the ADG orders offshore casino Bovada to stop serving Arizona, its first action against an online operator.
• February 2025: the ADG publishes a consumer warning about illegal online casinos and sweepstakes platforms.
• April 2025: cease-and-desist orders go to Modo.us (ARB Interactive) and Epic Hunts, alongside offshore sportsbooks. The ADG describes the operations as alleged felony criminal enterprises.
• June 2025: Stake.us and High 5 Casino are ordered to stop. Director Jackie Johnson says illegal gaming, whatever the platform or format, has no place in Arizona. Stake.us closes Arizona access by August 12, 2025.
• August 15, 2025: orders go to Pulsz, Betty Sweeps, Thrillzz and Fliff. Thrillzz leaves the next day. Pulsz stops Arizona purchases on August 26, ends play on September 5 and closes accounts on September 19, 2025.
• September 2025: the ADG orders UK raffle platform Raffall and an Arizona resident promoting a home giveaway to stop, stressing that calling something a sweepstakes, raffle or giveaway does not exempt it. Fliff’s casino brand Sidepot also leaves, the seventh sweepstakes casino to exit.
• January to June 2026: the Legislature’s 2026 regular session ends on June 13 without a bill on sweepstakes casinos.
• July 2026: a further round of orders names BetOpenly, Bookmaker, ClubWPT online poker, Kutt and Raffle Creator for offering unlicensed sweepstakes casino, poker and event wagering products. The ADG warns of criminal or civil action against the companies, their principals and employees, seizure of funds and restitution to Arizona players.

How Arizona law treats sweepstakes and gambling

Promotion of gambling, meaning running or profiting from an unlawful gambling business, is a class 5 felony under A.R.S. 13-3303, and the ADG has also cited the illegal enterprise and money laundering statutes. Benefiting from gambling, which could in theory reach a player, is a class 1 misdemeanor under A.R.S. 13-3304, but the ADG’s orders are directed at operators and we are not aware of any player being charged. The ADG regulates tribal gaming under the state compacts, event wagering, fantasy sports and racing, and its Director can refer cases to the Attorney General and county attorneys. It has also objected that sweepstakes sites accept 18-year-olds when Arizona’s legal gambling age is 21.

What Arizona players should check

• Age: Arizona’s minimum age for casinos, sports betting and even the Arizona Lottery is 21, and the ADG has cited under-21 access as one of its objections. Our Arizona list uses 21 as the standard even where a site accepts 18+.
• Availability: check that Arizona appears in the site’s list of eligible states before you buy anything. Brands named in an ADG order have closed accounts within weeks.
• Exit notices: when a site announces an Arizona exit, redeem your Sweeps Coins before the cutoff. Pulsz gave players three weeks to redeem in 2025.
• Location: geolocation blocks are enforced. VPN use breaches every operator’s terms and forfeits balances.
• Complaints: the ADG accepts tips about illegal gambling and publishes its cease-and-desist orders.

Other legal ways to play in Arizona

Sixteen tribes operate 26 Class III casinos across the state under the 2021 amended tribal-state compact, offering slots, blackjack, poker and other table games to players aged 21 and over. Online and retail sports betting launched on September 9, 2021 after House Bill 2772, with licences shared between tribes and professional sports franchises; daily fantasy sports was legalised at the same time. The Arizona Lottery sells draw and scratch games to players 21 and over, and pari-mutuel horse racing continues at Turf Paradise and off-track outlets. There is no legal online casino in Arizona.

Staying up to date

We monitor every ADG press release, the Legislature’s 2027 filings and each operator’s Arizona terms. The legal status on this page and the list of casinos still open to Arizona residents are updated as soon as anything changes, and the review date in the header shows when we last checked.