The online sports betting industry has dramatically escalated its political spending ahead of the U.S. midterm elections, with companies like DraftKings and FanDuel collectively pouring at least $72 million into races across the country, according to the most recent campaign finance data.
The industry now ranks as the third-largest corporate donor in the midterms, trailing only the cryptocurrency and technology sectors, according to corporate watchdog Public Citizen. The spending push comes as prediction markets such as Kalshi and Polymarket — which have received a warm reception from the administration of President Donald Trump — are emerging as potential rivals to traditional online sports wagering.
Much of the industry’s political cash is being funneled through a super PAC called Win for America, which launched late last year. The committee channels its funds into two affiliate PACs: American Future, which focuses on Democratic state races, and the American Conservative Fund, which targets Republican state contests.
Super PACs are permitted under U.S. law to accept unlimited donations from corporations and individuals and spend without limit in support of specific candidates, though they are barred from coordinating directly with campaigns or making direct contributions to them.
Rick Claypool, a research director for Public Citizen, described the group’s growing influence bluntly. “Win for America is ramping up to be another corporate money juggernaut,” he said, drawing comparisons to the artificial intelligence and crypto industries, each of which has already spent more than $100 million on the midterms.
Win for America and FanDuel declined to offer any comment on the matter. DraftKings, Fanatics, and UK-based bet365 did not respond when contacted for comment.
The industry’s spending is already showing tangible results in some states. In Georgia, where lawmakers are weighing legislation that would legalize gambling, Win for America directed more than $12 million into 34 state legislative races through its two smaller PACs ahead of the primary. According to a report by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in May, all but two of the candidates backed by the industry came out victorious.
Win for America is also directing significant funds toward races in Pennsylvania, where there had been a push to increase taxes on the online sports betting industry in order to fund public transportation assistance, according to election records.
In terms of individual contributions, DraftKings has given at least $34 million to Win for America, making it the top donor. FanDuel follows with at least $27 million, while bet365 and Fanatics have each contributed $5.5 million during this two-year election cycle. Bet365, which was founded by British billionaire Denise Coates, is routing its U.S. donations through its American subsidiary, Hillside (Shared Services US) LLC.
The industry initially contributed $43 million to Win for America through the first quarter of the year, then added another $29 million in the second quarter, federal election records show. Those figures likely undercount the industry’s total political footprint, as federal records do not capture all state-level spending or contributions to so-called dark money groups — nonprofits that are not required to disclose who funds them.
Beyond the super PAC, DraftKings has donated at least $1 million to other political committees, while FanDuel has given an additional $2 million elsewhere, records indicate.
The political activity is rooted in a significant legal shift. A landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling in 2018 struck down the federal law that had prevented most states from legalizing sports betting. In the years since, 39 states and the District of Columbia have moved to legalize some form of sports wagering, with 33 of those states permitting online betting, according to the American Gaming Association.
That expansion has driven a steady increase in federal lobbying by the industry. According to the nonpartisan research group OpenSecrets, FanDuel spent $1.1 million on federal lobbying last year — seven times more than it spent in 2024. DraftKings more than doubled its annual lobbying expenditures, reaching approximately $900,000.
DraftKings, FanDuel, Fanatics, and BetMGM formed the Sports Betting Alliance in 2021, a trade group created to lobby Congress and state legislatures in support of keeping online gaming legal nationwide. Notably, BetMGM has not contributed to the Win for America super PAC.
