Interview Overview

Tres York, VP for Government Relations, AGA

Industry Performance in 2025

In 2025, the US gaming industry operated against a backdrop of sustained consumer participation and heightened regulatory attention. State-regulated and tribal gaming continued to function within established legal frameworks, while enforcement activity and legislative scrutiny increasingly focused on illegal and unregulated offerings across the market.

For its year-end feature, Yogonet spoke exclusively with Tres York, Vice President of Government Relations at the American Gaming Association (AGA), who outlined how the industry performed over the past year, identified the policy issues that carried the most weight in 2025, and explained the AGA’s priorities as the sector moves into 2026.

Assessing 2025: Demand, Revenue and Enforcement

Reflecting on the feedback you’ve received from AGA members and your collaboration with key industry stakeholders, how would you characterize the gaming industry’s performance over the past year? What role did the AGA play in shaping the sector’s progress and navigating its challenges?

The gaming industry experienced a fast-paced year in 2025, driven by strong consumer demand, increasing responsible gaming initiatives, and robust enforcement against illegal actors. More than 134 million Americans visited casinos, and industry revenue was approaching a record-breaking $60 billion at the end of the third quarter - reflecting that legal gaming remains a trusted and mainstream form of entertainment.

Regulators and policymakers continued to work together against illegal operators to protect the legal market and uphold state and tribal sovereignty, and the AGA played a central role in supporting this progress. Through research, advocacy, and direct engagement with both industry partners, regulators, and state Attorneys General, we helped spotlight illegal operators and strongly advocated for enforcement action against them. Together, these efforts helped strengthen a resilient, responsible, and increasingly well-protected gaming ecosystem in 2025.

Key Policy Issues in 2025

How would you assess the evolution of the U.S. gaming industry in 2025? Which issues dominated the policy and business agenda this year, and which emerging themes do you expect to gain traction in 2026?

The gaming landscape continued to rapidly evolve in 2025, with the legal, state-regulated, and tribal markets remaining strong despite ongoing pressure from illegal and unregulated operators. We released data showing the illegal market remains one-third of the legal market, and we saw meaningful action at all levels of government to confront this serious threat, including significant steps taken by Congress and many state attorneys general who separately urged the Department of Justice to crack down on illegal, offshore operators.

“Sweepstakes” casinos continued to be a priority this year, with 6 states having enacted legislative bans, including in two of the four largest US markets in California and New York, while over a dozen state gaming regulators or Attorneys General took enforcement measures, either by issuing cease-and-desist orders, subpoenas, or legal opinions. These unlicensed and unregulated operations are no longer flying under the radar, and the legal industry will continue to push back on operators who exploit loopholes to offer real-money gambling experiences to the public without regulation.

However, the biggest challenge to the legal, regulated gaming industry this year has been the expansion of prediction market platforms ostensibly regulated at the federal level by the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) that are offering “sports event contracts,” which are, in our view, indistinguishable from sports wagering.

Nine states so far have issued cease-and-desist letters to prediction markets platforms, with active litigation in six states ongoing at the federal level, and a state lawsuit led by the Massachusetts Attorney General pending in state court. Additionally, gaming regulators have begun warning licensees in their states that becoming involved in prediction markets, which gaming regulators view as illegal gambling, could put their gaming licenses at risk.

Our research shows that Americans overwhelmingly view both sweepstakes casinos and prediction markets as forms of gambling.

The AGA will continue to advocate for state and tribal sovereignty and strong, consistent enforcement. Our role is to provide data and research-driven insights that demonstrate the value of the state-regulated and tribal system and the unique risks these unregulated products pose to consumers, operators, and the broader industry.

Looking to 2026, these issues will continue to shape the policy and business environments and remain central to the AGA’s work with regulators, lawmakers, and state Attorneys General.

AGA Priorities for 2026

Looking ahead to 2026, what will be the AGA’s top strategic priorities? Are there specific policy goals, industry initiatives, or milestones you aim to advance in the coming year and beyond?

In 2026, we will continue the fight to protect the legal, state-regulated, and tribal gaming markets from illegal and unregulated gambling. I believe our biggest focus on this front moving into next year will continue to be prediction markets, where our position remains clear: sports event contracts are sports betting, which is regulated at the state level.

At the same time, we’ll continue to lead on responsible gaming. Building on the launch of our Play Smart from the Start consumer hub, we’re committed to deepening industry-wide responsible gaming principles and ensuring a safe gaming environment.

These priorities – protecting the legal markets, defending state and tribal sovereignty, and advancing responsible gaming – will continue to guide our advocacy and industry initiatives throughout 2026.